Who you vote for is private, but whether you vote is public

Mailers and ads are using social pressure to get out the vote by reminding people that friends and neighbors can look up whether they voted. On this episode, Ben Kieffer speaks with Tom Lopach, CEO of the Voter Participation Center, about why they've taken this approach. Drake political scientist Adrien Halliez shares the origins of this strategy and why these organizations tend to be connected to Democrats. But first, trust in the polls has been shaken since 2016 and most recently by the 2024 Ann Selzer poll. Halliez shares what pollsters are doing to make their polls more accurate and how to read the polls. Also, Grinnell College political scientist Peter Hanson shares findings from the latest Grinnell College Poll, which asked wide-ranging questions on democracy, education, data centers and more. He is joined by students who helped compose the questions.