Fake polling data scandal rocks US midterm elections

A United States polling firm, Wedgewood, has admitted fabricating nearly all its election surveys, raising concerns about the credibility of polling data ahead of the midterm elections.

According to Axios, the admission followed an investigation by polling aggregator FiftyPlusOne, which uncovered irregularities in Wedgewood’s published results.

The firm subsequently acknowledged on X that it “wanted to test” whether an “entirely fabricated polling firm” could “gain traction.”

Wedgewood maintained that one crowdfunded Nebraska survey was legitimate.

Following the revelations, major polling organisations, including FiftyPlusOne, Nate Silver and Decision Desk HQ, removed Wedgewood’s data from their records.

The New York Times also withdrew 15 surveys previously attributed to the firm.

Michigan Senate candidate Mallory McMorrow said Wedgewood’s inaccurate polling damaged her campaign, discouraging donors and volunteers.

The controversy follows another fabricated polling operation, Median Strategies, earlier this year.

Experts warned that artificial intelligence could make fraudulent polling data easier to produce, further undermining public confidence in legitimate election surveys nationwide.