Stategic Vision is a Republican polling firm, but Vorlon felt is was accurate enough to trust during 2004. He knows more about what to trust than any of us, so I think numbers can be presumed accurate.
They may be good nationally, but in statewide races Georgia, their numbers just can't be taken at face value.
Strategic Vision's CEO, David E. Johnson, was named Honorary Chairman for the National Republican Congressional Committee's Business Advisory Council.
I read their poll information all the time, and it's frequently quoted in newspapers here, but I've noticed a slight GOP bias in Strategic Vision's polling over the many GA races they've covered. Conservative columnists in local newspapers often cite it as a "Republican polling firm."
Similarly, any WSB-TV-Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll conducted by Gallup seems to have a lean in the other direction in GA races.
To get the best idea of the GA political scene, we at the campaign I worked for would take the average of the AJC and the Strategic Vision polls.
Tweed mirrors what I have heard and read and talked about and Lord knows, Alcon, Vorlon and I have talked continuously about Strategic Vision polls like this one last year constantly.
It looks like an Independent poll not done for a client, yet is done by a company that is known for doing polls for Republican clients pretty much exclusively.
None of us poll-onlookers could make heads or tails of these things last year and therefore most election sites labeled it (R). However, in the final result, their polls were not far off from actuality, leaning slightly GOP in the Midwest.
For a little more info, I'll flag both Alcon and Vorlon on this one to get their opinions and see if they mesh with mine.
However, in Georgia statewide polling with polls looking like this one, they did very well in 2004, if anything leaning slightly Democrat but well within MOE as compared to results. Compared to the other two major pollsters who polled Georgia (Zogby and SUSA), they did better than both.
Last Strategic Vision poll in 2004:
http://www.strategicvision.biz/political/georgia.htmLast SV poll (10/31)
President:
Bush 55%
Kerry 41%
Other 1%
Undecided 3%
Actual: (11/2)
President:
Bush 58%
Kerry 41%
Other 1%
Last SV poll (10/31)
Senate:
Isakson 55%
Majette 40%
Buckley 1%
Undecided 4%
Actual: (11/2)
Isakson 58%
Majette 40%
Buckley 2%
Time will tell whether they will be as accurate in Georgia with these polls as they were in 2004, or what the real purpose of these polls are, but I take them at face value since they do meet all the requirements necessary of a legitimate poll (partisan or not).
And there you have it.
