• Publish Your article
  • Editorial Policy
  • Contact
  • Advertise
Thursday, October 9, 2025
No Result
View All Result
UK Herald
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Sports
    England rugby stadium Twickenham given new name after more than 100 years in shock new deal

    England rugby stadium Twickenham given new name after more than 100 years in shock new deal

    Peter Morgan dead at 65: Former Wales and Lions rugby star who became a politician passes away as club pays tribute

    Peter Morgan dead at 65: Former Wales and Lions rugby star who became a politician passes away as club pays tribute

    Horse racing tips: Unexposed Group 1 contender can stun the big guns at 14-1

    Horse racing tips: Unexposed Group 1 contender can stun the big guns at 14-1

    Woman ‘raped seven times by two French rugby stars who left her riddled with bite marks & with horror injuries’

    Woman ‘raped seven times by two French rugby stars who left her riddled with bite marks & with horror injuries’

    Horse racing tips: Gary Moore’s charge can gain revenge after falling last time out

    Horse racing tips: Gary Moore’s charge can gain revenge after falling last time out

    Ian Buckett dead at 56: Former Wales rugby star who was ‘admired and feared equally’ dies as tributes pour in

    Ian Buckett dead at 56: Former Wales rugby star who was ‘admired and feared equally’ dies as tributes pour in

    Horse racing tips: Bash the bookies with these longshots including 9-1 fancy

    Horse racing tips: Bash the bookies with these longshots including 9-1 fancy

    Shayne Philpott dead at 58 – New Zealand All Blacks rugby legend dies after suffering ‘medical event’

    Shayne Philpott dead at 58 – New Zealand All Blacks rugby legend dies after suffering ‘medical event’

    Horse racing tips: This 7-1 chance appears to have been laid out for race he won last year

    Horse racing tips: This 7-1 chance appears to have been laid out for race he won last year

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • food
    • Health
    • Travel
    Major airline removes carry-on bag sizers from boarding gates

    Major airline removes carry-on bag sizers from boarding gates

    Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Lounge review: ‘It doesn’t get bigger than this…’

    Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Lounge review: ‘It doesn’t get bigger than this…’

    What is Bleach or Facial, Best for Skin?

    What is Bleach or Facial, Best for Skin?

    Tourists are flocking to a mind-bending Chinese megacity where Google Maps doesn’t work

    Tourists are flocking to a mind-bending Chinese megacity where Google Maps doesn’t work

    An ESTA change has just made travelling to America more expensive for Brits

    An ESTA change has just made travelling to America more expensive for Brits

    The best Maldives alternatives that are cheaper — and three are in Europe

    The best Maldives alternatives that are cheaper — and three are in Europe

    Italy strikes for Gaza: What tourists need to know amid travel disruption in Rome and Milan

    Italy strikes for Gaza: What tourists need to know amid travel disruption in Rome and Milan

    ‘Dystopian’ cruise ship divides travellers — and gives a glimpse into the future

    ‘Dystopian’ cruise ship divides travellers — and gives a glimpse into the future

    Airline launches flights from £9 to European hotspots including Majorca, Alicante and Seville

    Airline launches flights from £9 to European hotspots including Majorca, Alicante and Seville

    I feel like a stranger in the UK after 21 years abroad

    I feel like a stranger in the UK after 21 years abroad

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Health
  • Opinion
  • Science
  • Tech
  • Crypto
  • Travel
  • Real Estate
  • Sports
  • More
    • Press Release
UK Herald
No Result
View All Result

What is an exit poll and how do they work?

by Justin Marsh
July 4, 2024
0
0
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterReddit


THE general election sees Brits head to polling stations or use postal votes to have a say in who they want in government.

A way of finding out who is likely to win the election before official results have been released is through an exit poll.

Alamy Live News. 2XFNA73 London, UK. 4 July 2024. Voters exit a polling station in Ruislip, north-west London, on the day of the General Election. The final YouGov poll projects a landslide victory for Labour. Credit: Stephen Chung / Alamy Live News This is an Alamy Live News image and may not be part of your current Alamy deal . If you are unsure, please contact our sales team to check.
An exit poll gives an indication of how some people have voted in the General Election

What is an exit poll?

Exit polls take place at around 133 polling stations across the country and those voting are asked to fill out a replica polling card after they have cast their real vote.

Tens of thousands of people are asked to fill out another polling card so these can be looked at before all votes have been counted.

This gives an indication as to how some people have voted, so may give an early indication as to which party is in the lead.

Fieldworkers from Ipsos Mori descend on the chosen polling stations to count up who could win.

Polling expert Sir John Curtice told the PA news agency: “Wherever possible we go back to the same places as last time. The method of the exit poll is that you compare the results in the selected polling stations this time, with the results of the exit poll last time.

How do exit polls work?

Identical ballots are used for exit polls, so it is like filling out your vote twice.

A replica ballot box is also used.

The reason for the same process is to encourage voters to carry out the exit poll as well as the main vote.

This is due to the process still feeling confidential rather than someone asking them who they have voted for.

What time are exit polls released?

Exit polls are released at 10pm which is also the latest time you can cast your vote and polling stations close.

This gives the current Prime Minister and other party leaders a snapshot as to how they are doing in the polls.

This is before the first results start to come in across the following hours.

Are exit polls accurate?

While a larger sample size and surveys at more ballot stations has improved the accuracy of the poll in the last few decades, it is still prone to making mistakes.

In 2015 it predicted a hung parliament, but David Cameron’s Conservatives squeezed over the line to a thin majority.

And in 1992 the poll famously predicted Labour leader Neil Kinnock would sweep into No.10 – yet John Major defied the odds to hold on to the keys for the Tories.

However, some have been way off the mark in the past.

For example, in 1974 the first British exit poll predicted a Labour majority of 132, but the actual majority was three.

But, in 2019, the exit poll predicted a Conservative majority of 86 seats, which was very close to the final 80-seat margin.

Sir John, professor of politics at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, said: “It’s tended to be relatively accurate, it’s not perfectly accurate, but there’s been a number of occasions in which it has ended up proving rather more accurate than what the opinion polls have been.



Source link

Related Posts

Clive Lewis: ‘Robin Cook showed us politics at its most serious. Labour has lost that balance’

Clive Lewis: ‘Robin Cook showed us politics at its most serious. Labour has lost that balance’

by Justin Marsh
October 8, 2025
0

Delivering the Robin Cook memorial lecture was one of the greatest privileges of my time in Parliament. But it wasn’t just a privilege – it was a burden too. The name Robin...

Obama in London: Have Starmer and Labour already shown they were listening?

Obama in London: Have Starmer and Labour already shown they were listening?

by Justin Marsh
October 6, 2025
0

They say never meet your heroes, but I have to disagree. Last week in London I met president Barack Obama. He radiated charisma, charm and patience to all the many people he encountered....

Week-in-Review: The calling of Keir Starmer

Week-in-Review: The calling of Keir Starmer

by Justin Marsh
October 4, 2025
0

“Now, the Tories – do you remember them?” Keir Starmer had spoken for a full 50 minutes before acknowledging the existence of Labour’s historic rival. The line was met with laughter –...

Animal health ‘fundamental’ to rebuilding trust with rural communities, says Labour MP

Animal health ‘fundamental’ to rebuilding trust with rural communities, says Labour MP

by Justin Marsh
October 2, 2025
0

A Labour MP has described animal health as “fundamental” to a wider attempt to rebuild trust with rural communities.  Speaking on the Labour conference fringe, Josh Newbury, the MP for Cannock Chase,...

Labour branded ‘nasty party’ after minister calls Ed Davey ‘fat bloke in wetsuit’

Labour branded ‘nasty party’ after minister calls Ed Davey ‘fat bloke in wetsuit’

by Justin Marsh
September 30, 2025
0

A senior minister has referred to the Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, as a “fat bloke in a wetsuit”. Torsten Bell, who serves jointly as a pensions and Treasury minister, delivered the...

Renewing the message: how can Labour fix its broken comms?

Renewing the message: how can Labour fix its broken comms?

by Justin Marsh
September 28, 2025
0

A little more than a year after their resounding general election win, the Labour Party gathers in Liverpool this weekend hoping to rekindle the goodwill that swept them into office in the...

Next Post
Smart Stewards UK Conference 2024: Bridging Knowledge and Action in Finance, Career  and Entrepreneurship”   

Smart Stewards UK Conference 2024: Bridging Knowledge and Action in Finance, Career  and Entrepreneurship"  

Popular News

Daily Mail appoints ‘world’s first’ influencer correspondent

Daily Mail appoints ‘world’s first’ influencer correspondent

October 9, 2025
Clive Lewis: ‘Robin Cook showed us politics at its most serious. Labour has lost that balance’

Clive Lewis: ‘Robin Cook showed us politics at its most serious. Labour has lost that balance’

October 8, 2025
Nobel Prize of Physics to 3 American Scientists for Energy Level Search

Nobel Prize of Physics to 3 American Scientists for Energy Level Search

October 7, 2025
Major airline removes carry-on bag sizers from boarding gates

Major airline removes carry-on bag sizers from boarding gates

October 7, 2025
Nobel Prize in Medicine for the discovery of 'Peripheral Immune Tolerance'

Nobel Prize in Medicine for the discovery of 'Peripheral Immune Tolerance'

October 6, 2025
Obama in London: Have Starmer and Labour already shown they were listening?

Obama in London: Have Starmer and Labour already shown they were listening?

October 6, 2025
Week-in-Review: The calling of Keir Starmer

Week-in-Review: The calling of Keir Starmer

October 4, 2025
UK Herald

All Rights Reserved © UK HERALD - The Voice of UK

Important Links

  • Publish Your article
  • Editorial Policy
  • Contact
  • Advertise

...

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Politics
  • UK News
  • Business
  • Science
  • National
  • Entertainment
  • Gaming
  • Sports
  • Fashion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Health
  • Food

All Rights Reserved © UK HERALD - The Voice of UK