Channel 12 Pollster Explains Election Day Data Collection and Analysis

Mano Geva, the well-known polls editor for Channel 12 News, offered a behind-the-scenes look at his role on election day, as voter turnout reached its highest point since 1981. Speaking on a program hosted by Avri Gilad and Erez Tal, Geva emphasized his team's aspiration for accuracy in their election forecasts. He revealed that data from sample polling stations is collected in real-time via tablets and processed in a secure, restricted room. Geva detailed his proprietary mathematical-statistical model, developed in 1999, which he stated has proven effective in predicting actual election results when voting patterns are consistent across sample stations. He acknowledged that factors like voter turnout and potential voter deception could influence the final outcome and create discrepancies between polls and reality. When asked about the differing results among various television channel polls, particularly those from Channel 14 conducted by Shlomo Filber, Geva declined to comment, stating he could only vouch for his own channel's data. He expressed uncertainty when asked to explain the disparities between different polls, stating, "I don't know how to explain it." Geva concluded by refusing to predict whether any bloc would achieve a decisive victory, asserting his role is to report data, not to make predictions.