Exit Polls and Voter Turnout

Arbeitspapier

We set up a model of elections or referendums with two alternatives to study how voter turnout and election outcomes are affected by the publication of exit polls on election day. We find that the introduction of an exit poll influences the incentive to vote both before and after the poll is published, but the signs of the effects are generally ambiguous. The fact that exit polls influence the incentive to vote before they are even published is sometimes overlooked in the debate on their desirability. We show that this can lead to premature conclusions about the impact of exit polls on election outcomes.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: EPRU Working Paper Series ; No. 2010-10

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Social Choice; Clubs; Committees; Associations ; Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior ; Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
• Subject: elections ; exit polls ; voter turnout ; Wahlverhalten ; Asymmetrische Information ; Neue politische Ökonomie ; Theorie

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Andersen, Asger Lau ; Jensen, Thomas
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): University of Copenhagen, Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU)
• (where): Copenhagen
• (when): 2010

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/82121
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET