The Des Moines Register and CNN announced Saturday night that they would not release their crucial Iowa poll, citing an error in which one candidate’s name was left out of polling questions.
Jonathan Martin of the New York Times tweeted that the candidate who was left out was former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg:
Surrogate who refused abortion asks SCOTUS to intervene as baby could be moved out of Texas
Georgia mayor, 23, ousted 10 months after making history as state’s youngest mayor
Republicans Attack GOP Candidate for Pointing Out How Many Foreign Students Attended Texas-Ohio State Game
Breaking: SCOTUS Blocks Trump’s Mail-in Ballot Restrictions Months Before Midterms
‘Trojan horses’ in America: Congress probes influence networks tied to China, Iran and Cuba
House Dems face Trump tariff dilemma as major Russia sanctions bill heads to floor
Supreme Court rejects Trump bid to revive strict mail-ballot rules before midterms
Trump Gives Huge Update on Russia-Ukraine War That Could Ease Pain at the Gas Pumps
GOP Gov. Candidate Forced to Swim for His Life After Plane Crash – Reporter Says Water Was ‘Only 30 Feet’ Deep
Saudi Arabia appeals to US as pipeline closure and Houthis spike oil prices
Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed says leaders must address ‘unpaid debts’ to Black communities
Elon Musk PAC Steps Up with Big Bucks to Fund Key Swing-State Races
Ex-Dem insider exposes what Harris told top donors days before Biden dropped out: ‘Insulting’
Breaking Video: Police Gathered at Mitch McConnell’s Residence – Comes After 95 Days Away from Senate, Questions About Health Concerns
Mitch McConnell casts first Senate vote since June fall
News: The @DMRegister is weighing whether to release their @jaselzer poll as planned tonight after @PeteButtigieg camp complained that his name was left off at least one survey questionnaire https://t.co/9dNNMrtUmc
— Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) February 2, 2020
Pundits had been eagerly anticipating the release of what Politico called “the most consequential poll in politics,” as it reflects expectations of the outcome of the first contest of the presidential primary, to be held Monday..
But it was not to be.
A statement on the Des Moines Register website read, in part:
The Des Moines Register, CNN and Selzer & Co. have made the decision to not release the final installment of the CNN/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll as planned this evening.
Nothing is more important to the Register and its polling partners than the integrity of the Iowa Poll. Today, a respondent raised an issue with the way the survey was administered, which could have compromised the results of the poll. It appears a candidate’s name was omitted in at least one interview in which the respondent was asked to name their preferred candidate.
Surrogate who refused abortion asks SCOTUS to intervene as baby could be moved out of Texas
Georgia mayor, 23, ousted 10 months after making history as state’s youngest mayor
Republicans Attack GOP Candidate for Pointing Out How Many Foreign Students Attended Texas-Ohio State Game
Breaking: SCOTUS Blocks Trump’s Mail-in Ballot Restrictions Months Before Midterms
‘Trojan horses’ in America: Congress probes influence networks tied to China, Iran and Cuba
House Dems face Trump tariff dilemma as major Russia sanctions bill heads to floor
Supreme Court rejects Trump bid to revive strict mail-ballot rules before midterms
Trump Gives Huge Update on Russia-Ukraine War That Could Ease Pain at the Gas Pumps
GOP Gov. Candidate Forced to Swim for His Life After Plane Crash – Reporter Says Water Was ‘Only 30 Feet’ Deep
Saudi Arabia appeals to US as pipeline closure and Houthis spike oil prices
Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed says leaders must address ‘unpaid debts’ to Black communities
Elon Musk PAC Steps Up with Big Bucks to Fund Key Swing-State Races
Ex-Dem insider exposes what Harris told top donors days before Biden dropped out: ‘Insulting’
Breaking Video: Police Gathered at Mitch McConnell’s Residence – Comes After 95 Days Away from Senate, Questions About Health Concerns
Mitch McConnell casts first Senate vote since June fall
While this appears to be isolated to one surveyor, we cannot confirm that with certainty. Therefore, the partners made the difficult decision to not to move forward with releasing the Iowa Poll.
CNN also had to cancel an hour of news programming that had been planned around the poll.
Politico reported: “Underscoring the attention paid to the poll, CNN had planned an hourlong TV program around its release. Instead, at 9 p.m. Eastern, the network’s political director, David Chalian, went on the air to explain why the poll wasn’t being issued.”
The stunning, last-minute decision, 48 hours before the Iowa caucuses are to be held, raised suspicions that the poll must have held bad news for one of the major frontrunners.
In 2016, supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) accused the Democratic Party of rigging the result for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after she won by a narrow margin in which some delegates were awarded to her by coin toss, and another was mysteriously switched to Clinton from Sanders.
Story cited here.
