ABSTRACT
Public opinion is the keystone of a representative democracy. No government can claim to be the legitimate voice of a people unless public opinion plays an integral role in the choice of political leaders and the development of public policy. Citizens in a democracy express their preferences through informed political activity, and leaders listen with a keen interest to those expressed preferences. Public opinion is the collective expression of attitudes about the prominent issues and actors of the day. The concept of a “public” holding “opinions” on various issues is almost as old as politics itself. Plato, for instance, saw public opinion as a danger if it meant the mass of citizens could freely express individual desires. The collective expression of attitudes about the prominent issues and actors of the day. Straw polls have inherent flaws that make them inappropriate as scientific indicators of public opinion.
