If Biden really does blow Trump out in November, will Democrats finally trust polls again?

[EJ24]

I think this website is literally the only place I can find where a rational discussion about polling data and averages takes place.

On every other Democratic-leaning site, if you even mention a positive poll for Biden, you're met with "OMG DON'T BELIEVE THE POLLS, OMFG WE HAVE TO VOTE, POLLS ARE WRONG, THEY WERE WRONG LAST TIME OMG PLZ VOTE!!!!111"

And there's concern trolls on this site who do the same thing. It's like 2016 really screwed with people psychologically. I have a Democratic co-worker who literally starts trembling when you mention polls.

That's why I think if anything, polls are underestimating Democratic enthusiasm and turnout. They will not be staying home or assuming they have it in the bag folks, trust me.

By all evidence and indication, this election is not remotely close, Biden has maintained a solid lead where he needs it since early 2019. If this holds true, will Democrats finally accept polls are generally accurate or are they still too traumatized?

[Alben Barkley]

I’ve noticed the exact same phenomenon you have. I can barely stand being in Democratic-leaning political discussion boards outside this one and maybe a subreddit or two for this reason.

The plus side of this is that I think it shows that people really believe Trump can win and are really scared of that this time, meaning they are more likely to vote than last time when perhaps they dismissed the possibility (which didn’t seem real to them) and thus thought it was safe to stay home.

The downside is that I have to see this annoying hyperventilating all over the place, and it’s hard to have rational discussions about the actual electoral odds. I’ve even been accused of being a Trump plant trying to make everyone complacent for saying that I believe Biden almost certainly will win.

Also, I think campaigns that are fueled by positivity and “hope” (i.e. Obama 2008) tend to have a better track record than campaigns that are fueled by fear of the other guy winning. (Though there are some exceptions, they’re usually Republicans like Nixon 1968.) And more importantly, I think if Trump tries to f—k with the results, people need to know just how bad his odds were before and thus should be skeptical if he claims to have won Wisconsin by 10 when he was down by 10 in all the polls or something.

So to answer your question, yes I hope Biden wins and that it’s not close (nor are there any successful attempts to cast doubt on the results), and yes I hope that makes Democrats chill about polls in the future. But I also hope the experience of 2016 left enough of a scar that people won’t forget how much every election matters in the future.