Released: October 31, 2004
Young Mobile Voters Pick Kerry Over Bush, 55% to 40%, Rock the Vote/Zogby Poll Reveals: National Text-Message Poll Breaks New Ground
Polling firm Zogby International and partner Rock the Vote found Massachusetts Senator John Kerry leading President Bush 55% to 40% among 18-29 year-old likely voters in their first joint Rock the Vote Mobile political poll, conducted exclusively on mobile phones October 27 through 30, 2004. Independent Ralph Nader received 1.6%, while 4% remain undecided in the survey of 6,039 likely voters. The poll is centered on subscribers to the Rock the Vote Mobile (RTVMO) platform, a joint initiative of Rock the Vote and Motorola Inc. (for more information: http://www.rtvmo.com). The poll has margin of error of +/-1.2 percentage points.
The poll also found that only 2.3% of 18-29 year-old respondents said they did not plan to vote, and another .5% who were not sure if they would. The results of the survey are weighted for region, gender, and political party.
The Rock the Vote Mobile political poll was conducted using a sample group from Rock the Vote Mobile's 120,000-subscriber base. Participants in the Rock the Vote Mobile (RTVMO) platform, a civic engagement initiative launched last March by Rock the Vote and Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT), responded to this poll between October 27 and October 30.
"The results of this text-message poll mirror what we're seeing in our more conventional polls," said John Zogby, CEO and president of Utica, N.Y.-based Zogby International. "Among 18-29 year-olds, Kerry leads the President by 14 points-55% to 41% in our current daily tracking poll-virtually identical to these results. Our text-message poll seems to have been validated by this experiment. All in all, I think we've broken some new ground in polling."
Mr. Zogby went on to note that Zogby International plans to explore future text-message surveys in response to concerns throughout the polling industry about reaching mobile telephone users. He added that text-messaging has become an important tool for political activists on both sides of the political spectrum, and Zogby International will be at the forefront of technology shifts that affect polling.
Officials of the non-partisan Rock the Vote praised the joint effort with Zogby and Motorola. The text-message poll marks a departure from current industry standards for polling, but promises to be a first step toward addressing the growing number of Americans who rely primarily-if not solely-on mobile phones.
"Rock the Vote's mission is to encourage young Americans to be heard in the political process," said Jehmu Greene, president of Rock the Vote. "Because this group has been increasingly underrepresented in traditional polls, our mobile phone poll conducted with Zogby takes a first step toward capturing the political attitudes of youth voters-reaching them while they are on the go."
Motorola officials said they were pleased with the poll's outreach, as well as the large number of respondents.
"Motorola has enthusiastically supported the RTVMO platform throughout this election year because mobile technology can change the way we live our lives," said Kathleen Finato, senior marketing director for Motorola. "We believe that by engaging in the political process through Rock the Vote Mobile, young adults will continue to be civically engaged beyond the presidential election."
The survey consisted of one two-part question: whether the recipient planned to vote, and which candidate they planned to vote for. Motorola sent the question out to cell users. Additionally, Rock the Vote and Motorola are using Rock the Vote Mobile to provide constant election updates to mobile phone users. For the remainder of the election season, Rock the Vote Mobile will send election updates to any text-messaging-capable cell-phone users who register at their website, http://www.rtvmo.com.
The results of the survey are weighted for region, gender, and political party. While the nature of the poll is outside polling industry standards, Zogby International is committed to getting the most accurate possible results using its proven weighting methods that ensure a sample more accurately reflects the make-up of the general population.
Rock the Vote (RTV) is a non-profit organization, dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and empowering young people to change their worldview through political and civic engagement. Over the past decade, Rock the Vote has become a recognized leader in the youth political movement by inspiring and motivating millions of young people to vote, volunteer in their communities, and mobilize behind specific youth-oriented issues.
Zogby International is one of the nation's leading polling firms, and has become a household name for its polling work on political elections and a variety of social and current events issues. The company was founded in 1984 by President and CEO John Zogby, who is considered one of the nation's leading pollsters and is a frequent guest on major national media shows.