How should we be reading the polls?

We have had a fair bit of polling this election. Some with organizations with long reliable histories like Leger, Think HQ and Janet Brown Opinion Research, some with reliable histories elsewhere but spotty results in Calgary like Mainstreet, and some new entrants like Spadina Strategies and NorthWest Research Group.

Many will spin — we should discount one poll, and put more weight into another, and sure, I’m guilty of the same thoughts myself.

But the main result I am seeing this time: consistency.

Commit a chart crime (it is politics, get over it), and put the polls side by side and you might see it. (all data grabbed from links on the Election’s wiki page)

I’ll add some crossover guides from the error bars and maybe it will “pop” a bit more.

Results of individual polls might be reported differently (X now in lead, Y slips back). But what I see is that we have two candidates whose campaigns are in a turnout and enthusiasm battle to win, who are within the margin of error.

So get out and vote. Encourage your friends to vote. If you’re on a campaign team, work hard getting your vote to the polls—because this election’s story is far from over, and no campaign is winning by dissecting polls on Twitter.