Two weeks after her firm incorrectly found Vice President Kamala Harris surging in increasingly red Iowa, pollster J. Ann Selzer said Sunday she is leaving election polling and ending her longstanding relationship with the Des Moines Register, which dates back to 1997.
“Over a year ago I advised the Register I would not renew when my 2024 contract expired with the latest election poll as I transition to other ventures and opportunities,” Selzer wrote in an op-ed for the newspaper .
The final Des Moines Register poll , released the Saturday before the election, found Harris (47 percent) and Donald Trump (44 percent) neck and neck, a shocking result in a state not considered competitive. According to unofficial results , Trump won Iowa by 13 points, 56 percent to 43 percent.
“Would I have liked to make this announcement after a final poll aligned with Election Day results? Of course,” Selzer wrote. “It’s ironic that it’s just the opposite. I am proud of the work I’ve done for the Register, for the Detroit Free Press, for the Indianapolis Star, for Bloomberg News and for other public and private organizations interested in elections. They were great clients and were happy with my work.”