Under the Dome podcast: Polls, policy and politics with Elon University pollster Jason Husser
Start your week in North Carolina politics with our latest Under the Dome podcast, for the week of Sept. 30, 2024. Dawn Vaughan here, your podcast host and The News & Observer’s Capitol bureau chief. On this episode, I’m joined by Jason Husser of the Elon University Poll.
He is assistant provost for academic excellence and integrity at Elon University, as well as a professor of political science and policy studies and longtime director of the Elon University Poll.
We talk about the latest polls in North Carolina on the governor’s race and presidential race, plus what issues are important to people being polled. And we also break down what is involved in doing a serious poll.
Some polls can take months, especially face-to-face polling, Husser said, which are the “highest quality” polls.
“What we’re in the cycle of right now is horse-race polling, because that’s where consumer demand is. I have a lot of reservations about horse race polling, in terms of its intellectual value and its value to society, but people want a sense of what’s happening,” Husser said.
He said about 20 polls have been done in the past six weeks in North Carolina.
“North Carolina is a very heavily polled state,” he said, similar to Pennsylvania. Husser notes that the Elon Poll does surveys year round, especially in the off-cycle about issues at the General Assembly and other topics.
Husser said “right now the key issue for most voters across the country is the economy. The economy is perpetually that big issue.”
Because society is so polarized, he said, conversations have moved from issues to personality.
Listen to the podcast to hear about shifts in how people talk about policy and politics.
Headliner of the Week
Stay tuned to the end for our picks for Headliner of the Week. Both are timely: Hurricane Helene, which was approaching as we recorded the podcast, and the last year the World of Bluegrass festival is in Raleigh.
Listen to our latest episode below and catch up on previous episodes. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Audible, iHeart, Pandora, Amazon Music and Stitcher.
This story was originally published September 30, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Under the Dome podcast: Polls, policy and politics with Elon University pollster Jason Husser."
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