Colonel, pollsters can virtually make a poll say whatever they want by HOW they ask a question, and the sample size of each group. Want it to lean GOP? Then oversample GOPers, and vice versa if you want it to go the other way. If you look at the sample size for each group over the last 2 months, they ALWAYS over sampled Democrats in the polls that were closer.
Anybody who thinks that pollsters can not get an accurate read on what is actually going on, just need look no further than internal polls for BOTH party's. Both of them knew EXACTLY what was going on, and both candidates acted accordingly. Of course, when internal polls show you losing, you hope against hope, but 95 out of a 100, you lose anyway.
Trump knew going in, that he only need 1 of the blue wall states to win more than likely....according to the internals.........it was a few points in each, but he was ahead in all of them. Mamala knew she need all 3, and was behind in all of them. While Penn was announced 1st, it would have made ZERO difference if it was Wis or Mich, if any one of them turned red, she lost, and they knew it! Oh sure, if Wis would have been announced 1st, the media would been like-----------> Mamala can STILL win, all she has to do is take Arizona, or Alaska, blah,blah,blah, sis boom,ba! But, by internal polling, Mamalas group would already have known and been writing the concession speech.
So WHY do pollsters in public do this crap if the internals show something different? Because the closer it appears, the more they are asked to take polls and get paid, while political nerds like us check their polls online frequently, and as everyone else, they get paid by CLICKS!