straw poll

British  

noun

1. an unofficial poll or vote taken to determine the opinion of a group or the public on some issue

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straw poll Cultural  

1. Originally, a small, informal opinion survey. Today, a straw poll is generally a large-scale, scientifically determined public opinion survey based on a random sample of the population. Straw polls are commonly used to test public opinion of candidates running for office.

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Example Sentences

Ms. Noem and Mr. Ramaswamy each garnered 15 percent of the vote in the straw poll.

From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2024

A straw poll of the football public would surely see the Heart of Midlothian man win that contest in a landslide.

From BBC • Nov. 19, 2023

A Reuters straw poll of two dozen voters around the country found many with little enthusiasm for any party and torn between what they viewed as the least bad choice.

From Reuters • Jul. 21, 2023

I conducted a straw poll on one of my mum’s WhatsApp groups.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2023

Jim McLaughlin, who conducted the poll for CPAC, said the straw poll was calculated with transparency and accuracy and all of the results are posted online.

From Washington Times • Mar. 7, 2023