What does pollster mean?
A pollster is a person who conducts or organizes an opinion poll. The work can include designing questions, selecting and interviewing respondents, monitoring the survey process, and analyzing or presenting the findings. Pollsters are especially important in election reporting, where their methods and results are frequently examined, and in market research, where they gather information about customers, products, or public attitudes. The word usually suggests professional or systematic work rather than an informal question-and-answer session. Although “pollster” can refer to anyone who asks questions for a poll, it most often denotes a trained researcher or an organization’s polling specialist. The related noun “poll” names the survey or its results, whereas “pollster” names the person responsible for gathering and interpreting those results.
nounA person who conducts or organizes opinion polls, especially as a professional researcher. A pollster may also be responsible for designing surveys, interviewing respondents, and reporting the results.
- A person who conducts, designs, or supervises opinion polls, particularly for a political campaign, news organization, or market-research company.
"The pollster found that support for the proposal had increased since the previous survey."
"Campaign pollsters reported a narrow lead for the candidate across several battleground states."
"The market-research pollster interviewed more than two thousand consumers about their purchasing habits."
The regular plural is “pollsters.”
"The pollsters released their final results on the morning of the election."
A pollster measures what people think, while the poll itself is the snapshot of those opinions.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does pollster come from?
“Pollster” is formed from the noun “poll” and the suffix “-ster,” a productive ending that can indicate an agent or person associated with a particular activity. The word developed in the context of surveying public opinion and became especially familiar through political polling. Its sense has since broadened beyond elections to include other kinds of systematic opinion and market research.
Related word forms
How pollster is actually used
The term is neutral and professional, but it is especially common in political reporting, polling, and market research. In general usage, it refers to the person conducting the poll rather than the survey instrument or its results.