Dear Readers: Tomorrow at noon, the McIntire School of Commerce will be hosting a virtual event featuring Sonja Hoel Perkins, a UVA alumna. A preeminent venture capitalist and philanthropist, she’s put a special emphasis on improving the careers of women and girls. Perkins sits on the Center for Politics’ Board,...
Author: Alan I. Abramowitz
How did the Political Science Forecasters Do?
Dear Readers: We will be releasing a new episode of our Sabato's Crystal Ball webinar series next Wednesday morning. It will be posted on our YouTube channel, UVACFP, and we will also send out the direct YouTube link in next Wednesday's issue of the Crystal Ball. We'll be discussing the...
Final Forecast: Results from Two Methods of Predicting the 2020 Presidential Election
Dear Readers: We will be back Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. for our final Sabato’s Crystal Ball: America Votes webinar before next Tuesday’s election. We will also have a reaction show the Thursday after the election. The livestream will be available at our YouTube page, UVACFP. If you have questions...
Forecasting the 2020 U.S. Senate Elections Using Presidential Polling Data
Dear Readers: On Thursday’s 2 p.m. edition of Sabato’s Crystal Ball: America Votes, we'll go in-depth on the race for the Senate. We'll also be joined by a special guest: Grace Panetta of Business Insider. The election has already started, with millions of votes already cast: Grace is closely following...
State Polls Give Biden Strong Lead in Electoral College as First Debate Looms
Dear Readers: Join us Thursday at 2 p.m. eastern for our latest episode of Sabato's Crystal Ball: America Votes. We'll be reacting to the first debate and assessing the state of play in the election with just a little more than a month to go. If you have questions you...
It’s the Pandemic, Stupid! A Simplified Model for Forecasting the 2020 Presidential Election
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- Two factors that historically have been helpful in forecasting presidential elections -- the power of incumbency and the state of the economy -- may be less useful in this year’s election, both because of long-term changes in American politics and the current public health...
Do Campaign Visits Pay Off? Evidence from the 2016 Presidential Election
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa over the weekend was a reminder of how much his campaign values well-attended rallies. -- Trump campaigned more times in more states than Hillary Clinton in 2016. -- However, a regression analysis of the 2016 results does not show...
Comparing National Polls in 2016 and 2020
Biden’s lead has been similar to Clinton’s, but it has been more stable
Editor's Note: This is the first of two issues of the Crystal Ball this week. We'll be back Thursday with our regularly-scheduled issue. KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- In aggregate, Joe Biden’s national lead over Donald Trump so far this year is very similar to the lead Hillary Clinton...
Recent Polling in the Swing States Favors Biden
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- Recent polling in 13 swing states shows a consistent advantage for Joe Biden over Donald Trump. -- The recent 2020 polling results correlate much more strongly with the 2016 election results than with the final 2016 polling results. -- This suggests that pollsters have...
A Coronavirus Recession Could Doom Trump’s Reelection Chances
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- The coronavirus public health crisis likely will lead to an economic downturn of unknown length and severity. -- Historically, second-quarter GDP growth in the election year is an important variable in predicting how an incumbent president will perform in the fall. -- A recession...
Democrats’ Dilemma: Ideology, Electability, and the 2020 Presidential Nomination in Iowa and the Nation
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- The Democratic electorate has been getting more liberal, although at the same time, Democrats are not necessarily prioritizing ideology as they select a presidential nominee. -- Over time, both Democrats and Republicans have expressed increasingly negative views of the other party's presidential nominee. --...
Don’t Believe the Washington CW: Trump is no Shoo-In for Reelection
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- Some commentators are beginning to look at Donald Trump as a strong favorite for a second term. -- These projections are generally based on the power of incumbency and the strength of the economy. -- However, it may be that the president won't benefit...
Medicare for All a Vote Loser in 2018 U.S. House Elections
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- “Medicare for All” has been a major issue in the Democratic primary race. But it also came up a lot in the 2018 cycle. -- A regression analysis comparing the performance of 2018 Democratic House candidates shows that those who supported Medicare for All...
Which Party’s Voters are More Divided?
Hint: It’s Not the One You Think
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- More Republicans identify as conservative than Democrats identify as liberal. -- This has led to questions about whether ideological fissures in the Democratic Party could make it harder for the party to rally around its eventual nominee. -- However, Democrats actually are more united...
Did Russian Interference Affect the 2016 Election Results?
KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE -- Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s recent testimony was a reminder that Russia attempted to influence the outcome of the 2016 election and very well may try to do so again in 2020. -- This begs the question: Is there any evidence that Russian interference may...