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"Manipulative Polls: A Looming Threat to Democracy?"

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"Manipulative Polls: A Looming Threat to Democracy?"

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Polls for Power, Not for the People

Politicians test soundbites before speeches, but never test the will of the people before passing laws. That’s not representation—it’s marketing.

By J.Farrell | Opinion

 

Isn’t it funny — or maybe just plain infuriating — that politicians can always find time to run a poll about their popularity, but never about policy?

 

Every election season, our inboxes overflow with “quick surveys” asking who we plan to vote for, what issues we care about (in carefully pre-selected categories), and how their campaign message is resonating. But once they win?
Silence.

 

No one asks, “Hey, how do you want us to vote on this?”
No one asks, “What does our community actually need right now?”


The polls stop — until the next election cycle.

And that’s the real problem: we’ve built a system where feedback only matters when it helps someone stay in power. The rest of the time, the people who actually live with the consequences — the rest of us — get left out of the conversation.

 

Imagine if government worked the same way local communities do.
When a road needs fixed, we talk about it. When a business closes, people step up to help. When a family struggles, neighbors find a way.
But in politics? They’re too busy playing chess to notice the board is on fire.

 

It doesn’t have to be this way.


If politicians can run endless campaign polls to test slogans and soundbites, they can damn well run polls that ask us — the people who hired them — how we want them to govern.

That’s not radical. That’s democracy.

 

Until that happens, Casper Buzz will keep doing what they won’t — giving our community a voice. Because here in Wyoming, we still believe in common sense, accountability, and the idea that government should work for the people, not over them.

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