Polling Firms Admit to Data Fabrication and Funding Failures

Several polling firms manipulated or fabricated survey data during the 2026 primary election season, fueling public cynicism regarding election integrity. In the Florida Republican gubernatorial primary, the Public Sentiment Institute and Patriot Polling allegedly manipulated data and failed to disclose funding from candidate James Fishback to improve his standing. The Public Sentiment Institute admitted to a "disclosure failure" and "methodological error" but denied that the manipulation was deliberate.

In a separate scandal, Median Strategies shut down after admitting it published fake surveys in California, Nevada, and Wisconsin. The firm described the fabrication as a "social experiment" to track how unverified polling spreads. One such sham poll falsely indicated that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass held a double-digit lead over City Councilmember Nithya Raman.

These incidents, combined with significant inaccuracies reported in the Democratic primaries in Michigan and Wisconsin, have increased skepticism toward polling accuracy ahead of the general election.