Reaching a pivotal moment in life, every American faces the responsibility of voting. This decision requires careful consideration of which candidates’ campaigns are gaining traction and what implications they carry for the future. Given that each candidate’s proposed policies will substantially influence the trajectory of life in the United States for the next four years, understanding their platforms is paramount.
Consequently, Americans nationwide experience a certain level of anxiety about the outcome of elections and the individuals who will ultimately assume governmental roles. Rather than remaining in a state of anticipation, citizens can turn to political polling websites for valuable insights into the progress of each candidate’s campaign.
These polling platforms provide comprehensive data on the percentage of public support each politician garners, both at the state and national levels. By engaging with this information, voters can better assess which candidates are currently thriving in their campaigns. A careful examination of these sites can uncover the depth and accuracy of the information they offer, especially in light of past election results. In this article, we will curate a list of the most reliable polling websites, equipping readers with the tools to gain a clearer understanding of how each candidate’s campaign is unfolding.
| Polling Website | Does it track the election? | Reliability | Amount of information |
| Real Clear Polling | Yes | – Accurate information – Has experts – Accurately predicted 2008 and 2012 presidential election outcomes – Correctly indicated that 2016 race between Trump and Clinton was close – In 2020, RCP predicted closeness of 2020 race more accurately than many other websites | – Tracks presidential and state elections – Polls about topics outside election |
| YouGov | Yes | – Has experts | – Election forecasts – Polls about topics outside election |
| Gallup | Yes | – Has experts | – Polls about topics outside election |
| Pew Research Center | No | – Has experts | – Polls about topics outside election |
| FiveThirtyEight | Yes | – Accurate information – Qualifications unknown – Data reveals that forecasts accurately predicted the probability of events | – Tracks presidential and state elections – Election forecasts – Polls about topics outside election |
1) Real Clear Polling
Real Clear Polling gives various pieces of information surrounding the elections. As soon as the home page is opened, one sees a graph depicting the percentages of support for Harris and Trump since July. There are also charts indicating which candidate is more popular in each state. Besides the election, charts are displaying the amount of approval for politicians, the amounts of nominations for politicians, and the amounts of people who think the country is going in the right or wrong direction.
Real Clear Polling is mostly accurate when it comes to its data on the elections. For example, the website’s graph for the 2020 election indicates that Biden received 51% of the votes, while Trump received 44%. This mostly aligns with data from official sites, which claim that Biden received 51% and Trump received 46%. Besides its information on the elections, another sign that the website is reliable is how it provides the sources it uses for its polls. There are also reliable members of its editorial team, one of whom has a degree in political science. Finally, it uses data from polls of different organizations, such as Quinnipiac University, Marquette University, CNN, and FOX News. Showing the answers from different samples of participants provides a stronger idea of how everyone in the country is thinking, rather than just a few groups of participants questioned by Real Clear Polling itself.
2) YouGov
YouGov uses a notable amount of detail in its polls. For instance, it uses a chart showing how many people intend to vote for Harris and Trump. Another helpful tool is its map of the U.S. which indicates which states are likely to vote for certain candidates based on their party. For example, it affirms that Oregon will certainly vote Democratic. The site has also created a list ranking over 200 politicians by their popularity. Users can even filter this list based on multiple criteria, such as the politicians’ ages, genders, parties, and countries. In addition, YouGov covers a wide range of political topics. This can be seen in its polls about subjects like the favorability of politicians, opinions about the state of the country, and participants’ financial well-being.
There are also several indicators that YouGov is reliable. One of these is how it discloses its methodology. In addition, it has qualified experts on its team, such as a professor of political science and a chief marketing officer with 17 years of experience in news and media.
3) Gallup
Gallup offers multiple polls regarding both the election and other political issues. It has one section titled Election 2024, and another titled Election Issues. Both of them display research on topics related to the elections, such as the amount of approval for politicians, the number of people who have planned to vote early, and which issues are considered most significant to this election. It also creates polls about other political issues, including LGBTQ+ rights, the economy, and immigration. However, this website lacks information on the elections for the state governments, as well as information on how the individual states feel about the state and presidential candidates. It also does not measure the amount of votes that each candidate is getting in the national and state elections.
Gallup proves itself to be a trustworthy site. After all, it has published articles such as How Does the Gallup Poll Social Series Work?, which reveal multiple details about its methods for each survey: when it is held, who participates, how participants are contacted, among others. The Gallup team also has 85+ years of experience with gathering data. In addition, they released a list of their senior scientists and advisors, who have a variety of degrees including Ph.Ds, an Ed.D, and an M.D.
4) Pew Research Center
Pew Research Center does especially well at revealing people’s political views across the country. Unfortunately, it does not give explicit information about the amounts of votes that each candidate is receiving in the presidential or senate races. However, it does have polls that ask questions about people’s opinions on the candidates, nor does it make predictions about election results. For example, one asks how many veterans support Harris and Trump, while another asks how various demographics will be affected by Harris and Trump’s policies. Pew Research Center also conducts polls regarding opinions on the election; for instance, it has asked people if the election will be run well, which types of ballots will be properly counted, and if they trust their local poll workers. Besides the election, it creates polls about other political subjects. Some of the questions asked in these are whether or not the U.S. is a good example of democracy, and how much common ground there is on Democratic and Republican policies.
Pew Research Center demonstrates that it is highly reliable. One way it does this is by disclosing its research methods on a page titled Our Methods. The website also displays a list of experts who work with Pew Research Center. One of them has a master’s degree in public policy and experience with conducting studies on technology.
5) FiveThirtyEight
FiveThirtyEight provides a plethora of information about the elections. It uses graphs to display which candidates have received more support throughout the past few months. The chart for the national polls dates back to late July, while the charts for senate polls of each state date back to February the earliest. Another useful piece of information is the polls that focus on topics outside the election results themselves. These ask citizens questions about which politicians they approve of, or which party they want in Congress, for example. This gives some hints as to who citizens will vote for. FiveThirtyEight also displays people’s answers to these questions in polls conducted by different organizations, such as Marist College, Quinnipiac University, InsiderAdvantage, YouGov, and CBS News.
FiveThirtyEight’s information is mostly reliable. In its predictions for the 2020 election, it claimed that Biden was more likely to win, and he did. Its predictions about which state would vote for who were also mostly correct. For instance, it correctly claimed that New York, California, and Connecticut would vote for Biden. Similarly, for 2022, the website stated that Republicans were more likely to win the House, which they did. On the other hand, it is true that Democrats won the Senate even though FiveThirtyEight claimed that Republicans were slightly more likely to win it. But, this does not suggest that the site is unreliable because it also pointed out that Democrats still had a chance to win. Another note is that FiveThirtyEight is public about the methods behind its forecasts. For example, one of its articles explains how its 2024 senate election forecast was created. Here, the author describes the statistical technique used, the programming platform used, along with how the polls are weighed. Another note is that FiveThirtyEight is public about the methods behind its forecasts. For example, one of its articles explains how its 2024 senate election forecast was created. Here, the author describes the statistical technique used, the programming platform used, along with how the polls are weighed.
However, a questionable detail is how FiveThirtyEight does not provide any information on the qualifications of its team. The biographies provided for each member only indicate the person’s role in the company and do not include education or experience.