Experts: Bias didn't skew NH polls against Clinton

[ecstatic]

WASHINGTON – Polling that ended too early and other technical shortcomings — rather than undetected racial bias — are the likeliest reasons so many surveys incorrectly suggested Barack Obama would defeat Hillary Rodham Clinton in the 2008 New Hampshire presidential primary, a report concluded Monday.

Clinton defeated Obama 39 percent to 36 percent in the Jan. 8, 2008, contest, even though many pre-primary polls showed Obama with solid leads. Clinton's victory gave her a badly needed burst of momentum just five days after Obama won a surprising victory in the Iowa caucuses, the year's first presidential contest.

...

The report, written by a panel of 11 pollsters and academics appointed by the American Association for Public Opinion Research, said polling may have ended too early to reflect last-minute shifts in voters' attitudes. In the best-known incident, Clinton's eyes welled up a day before the voting as she vowed to fight on no matter what happened.

"Because most of the New Hampshire polls ended data collection prior to this event, these polls would have missed any related last-minute shift to Clinton," the study said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090330/ap_on_el_pr/wrong_presidential_polling

Odd timing. Wow, people have spent the past year wondering about that? LOL