Poll Hub: Cut the Criteria

All eyes turned to the polls this week as the qualification deadline for the third Democratic Primary Debate came and went. But, should polls be used as debate criteria? That’s the question we pick up on in this week’s episode of Poll Hub. Then, presidential job approval ratings are often […] Read more »

Are Democrats as Split Over Healthcare as the Candidates Are?

Healthcare was the first topic addressed on both nights of last week’s Democratic presidential debates in Detroit, and while the various positions expressed weren’t a surprise, the level of acrimony was. … While the Democratic candidates for president were clashing, Democrats nationwide — including independents who lean Democratic — may […] Read more »

Can Trump’s Words Incite Violence?

This installment of the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast deals with two mass shootings this weekend, one of which was explicitly tied to white nationalist terrorism. On Saturday, a young white man targeted immigrants and killed at least 20 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, in an attack being investigated […] Read more »

Policy Fissures in the Debates Aren’t What Divide Voters

Hot-button ideological issues took center stage in last week’s Democratic debates, as candidates fought over things like “Medicare for all” and the decriminalization of illegal border crossings. But while Democratic candidates might be divided by ideology and policy, Democratic voters mostly are not. The Democratic electorate is not clearly or […] Read more »