Dan Delmar: How some polling can breed discrimination – Montreal Gazette

Modern politicians recognize that an abundance of demographic data can pollute policy decisions, Dan Delmar writes. Dario Ayala / Montreal GAZETTE

Political polling can be informative and enlightening when it gauges public opinion with relative accuracy. When political parties and media rely too heavily on polls that divide electorates along cultural lines, however, demographic data could inspire less enlightened ideas.

One such idea, still far too accepted in pluralistic democracies, is that the views of minority citizens are worth less than views of those who belong to the cultural majority.

In Quebec, polling among francophones is common practice, but it merits some reflection ahead of next years provincial elections. Though reflexively dividing the electorate along linguistic lines could in part be a reflection of institutionalized nationalism, it is widely accepted industry practice and by no means unique to Quebec pollsters.

Political prognostication might not be an exact science, but it is a legitimate private-sector endeavour. Works like Le Code Qubec can reveal fascinating truths about this society, truths that work in favour of arguments for diversity.

As unimpeachable as pollsters believe their methodologies to be, surveys are often commissioned by political parties and others interested less in demography and more in manipulating data to further exclusionary narratives.

There is nothing inaccurate or unethical with, for instance, a Quebec newspaper reporting on polls like last months describing, as the Montreal Gazette did, the key francophone-only category, which actually decides who wins the election because it is spread in many ridings across Quebecs capacious political map.

What is less ethical is having much of the political class fostering a climate where its encouraged to shamelessly appeal almost exclusively to the majoritys perceived sensibilities over the long-term collective interests of Quebecers.

Anglophones also receive unwarranted preferential treatment.

Just as attempting to capture the francophone zeitgeist can be myopic, prioritizing anglophone concerns as the second-most relevant category also contributes to repressing the views of less historically privileged minority groups. In polls, they are often lumped into the allophone or other category, a smorgasbord of ethnics whose identities and priorities are rarely worth quantifying, let alone considering in legislation.

One neednt look far to find examples of destructive demographics.

South of the border, Donald Trumps presidential campaign relied heavily on mass outrage but it was also successful because of the sophisticated microtargeting of white voters in key Rust Belt districts. The consequences for minorities of his narrow appeal, from travel bans to the elimination of basic social services, are becoming more frightening by the day. Gerrymandering electoral districts based on racial demographics will only further cement institutional discrimination.

While language-based policies are less toxic than the racial kind, both are discriminatory. They are also becoming less effective by the day, as millennials and younger Canadians children of multiculturalism defy long-held stereotypes.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron could be seen as examples of successful millennial-driven leadership with more universal appeal. Modern politicians recognize that an abundance of demographic data can pollute policy decisions and, since all citizens are theoretically equal in a democracy, much of this data should ultimately be considered immaterial to crafting truly successful political movement.

All polling could be limited in the days or preferably weeks leading up to a vote rather than only the day of (the guideline currently enforced by Elections Canada), but unfortunately, there are few simple solutions. Bans on cultural polling would be unfeasible in an age of widely available Internet metadata, and possibly unconstitutional.

The onus is on political parties and, to a lesser extent, the polling industry to self-regulate and resist the temptation to use data to place greater value on one group of citizens over another. Political polling is most valuable when it measures impressions, not identities.

Dan Delmar is a political commentator and managing partner, public relations, with TNKR Media

twitter.com/DanDelmar

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Dan Delmar: How some polling can breed discrimination - Montreal Gazette