Fake Polling Firm Wedgewood Polls Admits to Fabricating Data That Impacted 2026 Primaries
A defunct polling firm, Wedgewood Polls, admits to fabricating data, potentially swaying 2026 primary elections and damaging legitimate political campaigns.
POLICY WIRE — Washington, USA — A now-defunct organization known as Wedgewood Polls has admitted to fabricating survey data, a revelation that suggests the fake firm may have influenced the outcomes of several contentious 2026 primary elections.
The admission followed an investigation by the polling website FiftyPlusOne, which scrutinized the firm’s research methods. Wedgewood Polls had been operating as a legitimate entity, accepting donor funds to conduct surveys and distributing raw data that was later revealed to be entirely fraudulent.
In a statement posted to X, the firm claimed its actions were part of a social experiment designed to test how easily a fabricated polling company could gain credibility. The group wrote, We wanted to test a simple hypothesis: How easy is it for an entirely fabricated polling firm to gain traction, be taken seriously, and expose how little scrutiny exists in media and public commentary? The short answer: Far too easy.
The consequences of this experiment were felt acutely by political candidates, including Michigan state senator Mallory McMorrow. McMorrow suspended her U.S. Senate campaign in July, roughly one month before progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed secured the Democratic primary victory.
McMorrow noted that a late June poll from Wedgewood, which showed her support plummeting into single digits, contradicted her campaign’s internal data. She explained on X that the fake poll caused donations to dry up, demoralized volunteers, and prompted reporters to pressure her to exit the race.
“Sure, a point was proven. Polling is broken. But tens of thousands of people poured their hearts, time, energy, hard-earned money into something they believed in – for a year-and-a-half, and it was treated like a game,” McMorrow stated.
Other races were also affected by the firm’s deceptive practices. According to Politico, Wedgewood released a fabricated poll suggesting democratic socialist Francesca Hong was leading the Wisconsin gubernatorial primary, though moderate Democrat David Crowley ultimately won the contest.
Additionally, the firm published a fake poll indicating that the U.S. Senate race in Mississippi was competitive for Democrats. Mississippi has consistently voted Republican in every Senate election since at least 1988, according to 270toWin. Democratic candidate Scott Colom had even shared the poll with his press list as evidence of his campaign’s momentum.
The scandal emerges during a period of intense political competition, with Republicans working to maintain control of Congress. President Donald Trump has been holding frequent rallies in states such as Ohio, Kansas, and Texas, where Democrats have been working to gain ground.
Attempts to reach Wedgewood for comment were unsuccessful, as both the firm’s website and its X account have been deactivated. Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
