Yes, you can generally trust issue polling — but there’s a catch

A new study of polls on hundreds of state ballot initiatives reveals no bias towards liberals or conservatives, but rather a consistent underestimation of the status quo

There is a status quo bias in American politics. Most people think of the present as the ideal, and when the time comes to vote for reforms, they choose to vote against policies or politicians that promise to move the politics too far to the left or to the right. That’s one reason Bernie Sanders can’t win a party nomination for president, and why Ted Cr…