Monmouth University Polling Institute admitted Wednesday that it's most recent Democratic primary poll appears to be an outlier.
The poll quickly gained attention when it was released Monday because the results were a far cry from previous polls done by both Monmouth and other polling organizations. Specifically, it showed the frontrunner, former Vice President Joe Biden, falling 13 percent to a statistical tie with Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
"It occurs very infrequently, but every pollster who has been in this business a while recognizes that outliers happen. This appears to be one of those instances," Patrick Murray, director of the institute wrote in a statement on Wednesday.
The poll was notable because it was one of the final polls the Democratic Party used to determine which candidates will qualify to take the stage during the party's third debate in early September. Biden, Sanders, and Warren have already met the requirements.
On Tuesday, before Monmouth announced that the poll may not be the best indicator of public opinion, Murray told Cheddar that Democratic-leaning voters might be "second guessing" the former vice president.
"Voters are now searching for: who do I think is the best candidate for me, for the issues that I stand for, and also, for beating Donald Trump. Maybe they're second guessing Joe Biden," Murray said.
On Wednesday, after the poll was deemed an outlier, Murray issued a statement to Cheddar that still indicated his belief that Biden is largely finding success because of his name recognition.
"While the horse race results of our poll are different from other national polls, the underlying dynamics of the race remain that a large proportion of Biden's support is based on name recognition and perceptions of electability," he said.
Murray added: "Voters are starting to tune in and may cast about. They could end up sticking with Biden in the end, but it remains a sign that his support is based on a different set of priorities than it is for voters who back other candidates."
The Monmouth poll released Monday was based on 298 registered voters who identified as Democrats or lean toward the Democratic party, with a +/- 5.7 percent point margin of error.
On Wednesday, another set of DNC-approved qualifying polls were released. Both the USA Today/Suffolk University poll and Quinnipiac University poll show Joe Biden in the lead at 32 percent with Warren and Sanders in second and third by significant margins.
Biden's Deputy Campaign Manager and Communications Director Kate Bedingfield told MSNBC Tuesday, "He is leading in the polls, to be clear."
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As President Biden's poll numbers fall with Black voters, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass. 7th District) joined Cheddar to discuss what she feels could help the embattled administration: deliver on policies. Pressley pointed to stalled legislation such as new voting rights laws and Build Back Betters and canceling student loan debt, which would go a long way to improving his standing with Black constituents. "President Biden has the authority and the power to alleviate this burden, which would also help in closing the racial wealth gap, and he can do it by executive action with the stroke of a pen," she said. "And it doesn't require one vote from Congress. So, the Biden administration just needs to deliver to Black America in a tangible and impactful way."
