Reuters/Ipsos

Reuters/Ipsos is a collaborative polling partnership between the news agency Reuters and the market research firm Ipsos, established to produce public opinion surveys for global and national audiences. It supplies regular tracking polls, electoral forecasting, and topical surveys for readers of Reuters and clients of Ipsos, operating across multiple countries and policy domains. The series informs reporting on elections, public attitudes, and socio-political trends used by journalists, analysts, and policymakers.

Overview

The Reuters/Ipsos collaboration draws on the editorial reach of Reuters and the methodological infrastructure of Ipsos, with polling operations linked to bureaus in cities such as London, Washington, D.C., Paris, Berlin, and Tokyo. Polls have covered contests like the United States presidential election, the United Kingdom general election, the French presidential election, and referendums such as the Brexit referendum. Coverage often parallels interest in figures including Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, and Vladimir Putin, and connects to events like the Iraq War, the Eurozone crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Results are frequently cited alongside analysis referencing institutions like the European Union, the United Nations, and the World Health Organization.

Methodology

Reuters/Ipsos employs techniques used across market research exemplified by organizations such as Gallup, Pew Research Center, YouGov, Nielsen, and Ipsos MORI. Sampling frames leverage telephone, online panels, and mixed-mode approaches familiar to researchers at Harvard University, Stanford University, University of Oxford, and London School of Economics. Weighting procedures mirror practices associated with the U.S. Census Bureau and statistical guidance from bodies like the Royal Statistical Society. Questionnaire design and question-order effects are evaluated in the tradition of survey methodologists linked to Princeton University, Columbia University, and University of Michigan. When polling on elections, Reuters/Ipsos uses turnout models similar to those applied by analysts of FiveThirtyEight, The Economist, and BBC News.

Major Polls and Findings

Major releases have tracked voter intention in contests involving parties and leaders such as the Conservative Party (UK), Labour Party (UK), Democratic Party (United States), Republican Party (United States), La République En Marche!, and personalities including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Nigel Farage, Marine Le Pen, Pedro Sánchez, Justin Trudeau, and Narendra Modi. Polls on public policy have gauged attitudes toward crises comparable to the 2008 financial crisis, climate issues spotlighted in COP21 and COP26, and health responses seen in the H1N1 pandemic and COVID-19 pandemic. Findings have intersected with economic indicators tracked by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and central banks like the Federal Reserve System and the European Central Bank. Social attitudinal surveys have paralleled research themes explored by universities such as Yale University and University of Chicago on polarization and identity politics, examining phenomena similar to movements like Black Lives Matter and Occupy Wall Street.

Reception and Criticism

Media reception has ranged from praise by outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, Financial Times, and The Wall Street Journal to critiques in specialist commentary from analysts at Brookings Institution, American Enterprise Institute, and Cato Institute. Methodological critiques echo longstanding debates invoked in literature by scholars at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, California Institute of Technology, and University of California, Berkeley concerning nonresponse bias, weighting, and mode effects. Comparisons with historical polling failures involving polling around the 2016 United States presidential election and the 2015 United Kingdom general election inform skepticism addressed by commentators at The Atlantic and The New Yorker. Legal and regulatory contexts sometimes referenced include rulings by bodies like the Supreme Court of the United States and election administrations such as the Federal Election Commission and the Electoral Commission (UK).

Impact and Influence

Reuters/Ipsos polling informs coverage by international news organizations including Al Jazeera, CNN, Bloomberg News, and Agence France-Presse, and is cited in analyses by think tanks such as the Council on Foreign Relations and Chatham House. Its data feed into academic research from institutions like the University of Cambridge and policy formation at ministries in capitals such as Canberra, Ottawa, and New Delhi. Corporate actors including Google, Facebook (Meta Platforms, Inc.), and Apple Inc. reference public-opinion trends when shaping platform policy and product strategy, while financial markets monitored by exchanges like New York Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange react to polling indicators tied to fiscal policy and leadership. The polls contribute to public understanding of electoral dynamics akin to analyses of the European Parliament election and the United Nations General Assembly sessions.

Category:Public opinion polling