CBS/NYT, Newsweek Bring Up Rear As Least Accurate Polls

November 6th, 2008 6:08 AM

Via Drudge. According to a study performed by a Fordham University scholar, the least accurate of the 20 presidential polls were those performed by CBS/New York Times and, in dead last, Newsweek.

In its final poll, CBS/Times forecast an 11-point Obama margin, 52-41.  Newsweek was even more "optimistic", foreseeing a 12-point Obama win, 53-41.  

According to Fordham's Costas Panagopoulos, Obama's winning margin was 6.15 points.  So the two big polling losers were wrong by a factor of roughly 100%.  Not very accurate, you might say.  But if the polls were sufficient to suppress Republican voter enthusiasm in a few key districts, surely worth any temporary stain on their reputations to the liberal outlets.  Come on, President-elect Obama has said we're all going to have to make sacrifices!

Note:  The winners were Rasmussen and Pew, both of whose final calls were spot on.