📊 How did the midterm polls perform?

Weekly Roundup The latest findings from Pew Research Center · Subscribe ↗ The most common question pollsters hear around election time is “Who’s going to win?” A close second in 2026 was “Are the polls going to be wrong again?” As final vote tallies come in, it’s clear that preelection polls captured the direction of this year’s election while generally understating the size of Democratic Party’s advantage. Americans across party lines and age groups are more likely than they were a year ago to say they trust information from national and local news organizations. Trust in local news remains highest, while far fewer people trust information from social media. About seven-in-ten Americans (69%) say social media companies have too much power and influence in politics today, including roughly equal shares of Republicans and Democrats. A smaller majority (55%) say the same about U.S. news organizations, with Republicans far more likely to hold this view. LGBTQ Americans are more likely than those who aren’t LGBTQ to say they are part of an online community (49% vs. 35%). Around three-quarters of LBGTQ adults who visit online communities say they do this to feel accepted, compared with around half of other adults. From our research The number of people in the U.S. who identify as Middle Eastern or North African by ancestry. The estimated size of the MENA population increases to 5.2 million when considering other characteristics, like birthplace, language and family relationships.