National: The Most Sophisticated Of Political Polls
As Election Day nears (only four more days!!), it seems like most people we know are living on a figurative diet of electoral projections. From the sophisticated (like FiveThirtyEight or Real Clear Politics) to the intensely simplified and straightforward (as in the case of How Is Obama Doing), there is really no shortage of corners of the web for people to stay on top of political polls.
But! In case you were worried about the soundness or veracity of these polls &mdash both in terms of methodology and outcome &mdash 7-Eleven, Culver's Custard, and Domino's have all got you covered. After the jump, some very important data, factoids, research methods, and maps!
First up, 7-Eleven! As you can see from the map pictured directly below, by 7-Eleven's projections, Barack Obama is the sure winner:
7-Eleven conducted its poll by inviting customers to vote with their cups (exactly what it sounds like). As you can see on the map, many typically red states do not have 7-Eleven stores, which has likely skewed the date in favor of Barack Obama. Furthermore, there is no limit to the number of votes, so an especially ardent Obama supporter could go in several times a day, purchasing coffee in a blue cup each time. On the other hand, per the "Fun Facts" section of the 7-Eleven site, their "George W. Bush cup outsold Al Gore's cup by just 1 percentage point." Also, "the 2004 7-Eleven results tracked identically with published national election results," so, there you have it?
Meanwhile, Culver's Custard has "Reese E. Buttercup" (John McCain) and "Heath Toffeebits" (Obama) going head to head, and here's what those results looks like:
For clarity, the two "candidates" are ice cream sundaes, and although the Obama stand-in is winning, is it possible that this has less to do with politics than with deliciousness?
Finally, Domino's. (If you'd like an image, we recommend clicking through to the post about it on Pollster.) This poll was less about political projections, and more about pizza preferences tied to political parties (sidebar: check out that alliteration!). Among other things, they found that:
Republicans spend more money per order and use credit cards more than other consumers. They also like specialty pizzas more than most and are most likely to order online. Republicans are also more likely to pick up their pizzas.Democrats are more likely to pay with cash and like more variety with their orders, more often adding side items and beverages when ordering pizza.
Ready to turn away from FiveThirtyEight or CNN now?
"Coffee and Custard Polls Swing Towards Obama" [The Food Section]
"On Pizza and Politics" [Pollster]
