Median Strategies Withdraws Fake LA and WI Polls

A group calling itself Median Strategies admitted that its recent Los Angeles and Wisconsin polls were fabricated as a short-term social experiment to test how unverified polling information can spread in political discourse. The fake LA poll, which claimed Karen Bass led Nithya Raman by nearly 12 percentage points, and a Wisconsin poll purporting a large lead for Francesca Hong were withdrawn and labeled not genuine, with the firm saying it would publish no further polls. The disclosure followed scrutiny from outlets and campaigns, with Bass’s team deleting a celebratory post and both campaigns urging verification and investigation of misleading polling. Media coverage noted that the episode coincided with other unexpectedly close races and highlighted a broader credibility problem in polling. Median Strategies asserted it had no partisan aims and that the data were never intended for publicity, though critics warned of real-world influence on voters and campaigns. The episode has sparked renewed calls for accountability and verification in poll reporting across outlets and political circles.