Editor’s note: ‘Customized’ polling needs to catch on with more politicians

Polling voters in English is routine during any election. However, some politicians have polled their constituents in other languages. Pollster John McLaughlin surveyed Spanish-speaking voters in their own language for Donald Trump, reporting they found him more favorable than those who were polled in English. And it’s a strategy that’s not exclusive to the right. Supporters of New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani released a poll made in four languages. The survey, conducted from July 16-24, asked 44 questions in English, Spanish, simplified Chinese and Bangla. It found Mamdani in the lead with 50% of the vote from poll respondents in the general election. Trailing him were former Gov. Andrew Cuomo with 22%, GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa with 13% and Mayor Eric Adams with 7%.

While still early in the race, the results were eye-popping. That’s because the multilingual survey went “deep dive” into demographics, said Amit Singh Bagga, whose Public Progress Solutions worked on the poll with Zenith Research. “We asked about national origin for Latinos, South Asians and East Asians. We asked about Jewish denomination,” Bagga told City & State. “Our poll gives probably the most complete demographic picture of where the likely voter electorate is right now.” Politico New York reported that Cuomo criticized the poll for assuming Mamdani’s campaign would encourage a large turnout of young and college-educated voters. Political consultant Hank Sheinkopf found the multilingual approach smart but costly, explaining why many politicians pass on the strategy. Keeping up with Mamdani’s rise, however, shows that surveying New Yorkers in their own languages delivers a unique perspective. It may be a worthwhile expense more candidates may want to consider.