First Past the Poll is a blog focused on polling analysis, election forecasting, and political statistics more broadly. Created in August 2018, the site aims to tell data-driven stories in an engaging and easy-to-understand fashion.
First Past the Poll is run by Bradley Wascher (me). I’m currently a Contributing Analyst for the nonpartisan newsletter Inside Elections. There, I write articles about national political campaigns, alongside overseeing all of the publication’s data projects, creating graphics for stories, and assisting with race ratings for House, Senate, governor, and president. I also was a contributing author to the 2024 Almanac of American Politics.
I graduated from Western Kentucky University with a bachelor’s degree in politics and statistics, and from Georgetown University with a master’s degree in government. While my first true love in political science will always be traditional polling methodology, I also embrace new approaches to surveys and modeling alike.
First Past the Poll 