Wedgewood Polls Admits To Fabricating Election Data
The firm claimed its fraudulent activity was an experimental project to expose industry vulnerabilities.
Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Elections
Live Poll
Do you trust the accuracy of the political polling data reported by major media outlets today?
Wedgewood Polls has publicly admitted that it fabricated the majority of its recent political polling releases. Major media organizations and aggregators have since removed the firm's data from their election trackers.
Why it matters
The firm claimed the fabrication was an experiment meant to expose a lack of oversight and low barriers to entry in the political polling industry. The admission has prompted outlets to scrub erroneous data from race-level models.
The firm's fabricated polls were widespread, including 15 releases in The New York Times tracker and at least 17 entries on Decision Desk HQ. In one instance, a fake poll predicted an outcome 18 points different from the actual Louisiana result.
The players
Wedgewood Polls
This polling firm admitted to creating fake data for political races as an experimental project.
Julia Letlow
She is a Republican Representative who faced John Fleming in a Louisiana Senate primary runoff.
FiftyPlusOne
This organization confronted the pollster with evidence that it had been fabricating data.
Mallory McMorrow
She is a Michigan state senator who withdrew from the Democratic primary.
The details
FiftyPlusOne confronted the pollster with evidence of the fraud, leading the company to confirm that its releases lacked real data. The misinformation affected various high-profile race trackers, including The Economist and VoteHub.
Timeline
June 25, 2026: Wedgewood released a poll showing Fleming leading Letlow.
June - October 2026: The New York Times included Wedgewood polls in its tracker.
July 29, 2026: VoteHub included Wedgewood data in a polling rundown.
August 4, 2026: Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan took place.
October 20, 2026: FiftyPlusOne confronted Wedgewood Polls regarding the fraud.
Political Context
The revelation follows a pattern set by the 2024 presidential election polling integrity audits, which similarly challenged the methodologies used by major tracking firms. Critics argue this exposes a structural failure where outlets rely on unverified pollsters to fill demand.
Voters and campaign observers should be aware that race-level projections from mid-2026 may be unreliable if they were sourced from Wedgewood. Reliance on these faulty figures may have caused incorrect perceptions of candidate strength leading up to primary dates.
The takeaway
The incident serves as a reminder for voters to cross-reference multiple reputable sources when evaluating candidate support. Verifying the credibility of polling outlets remains a vital step for citizens tracking the status of political races.
Further reading
For more on the reliability of polling data in modern campaigns, visit the United States Elections section.
Live Poll
Do you trust the accuracy of the political polling data reported by major media outlets today?
