Question

Gallup's final presidential election poll was conducted November 1-4, 2012. The poll included a random sample of 2551 adults, aged 18 and over, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, who were identified as likely to vote. Forty-eight percent of these likely voters said they would vote for Barack Obama. Does this provide evidence that, among all likely voters at the time the poll was conducted, less than half supported Barack Obama?

A) Yes, because the sample is representative of all likely voters.
B) Yes, because 48% is less than half of the sample.
C) No, because the poll only includes likely voters.
D) No, because the information is insufficient to make a conclusion.

Answer 1

D) No, because the information is insufficient to make a conclusion.

The answer is no, the information is insufficient because 48% support with an unclear margin of error and other statistical factors does not conclusively indicate that less than half of all likely voters supported Barack Obama in the 2012 election.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question focuses on interpreting the results of Gallup's final presidential election poll from 2012, specifically relating to Barack Obama's level of support among likely voters.

The appropriate answer is option D) No, because the information is insufficient to make a conclusion.

This is because 48% support does not automatically imply that less than half of all likely voters supported Obama due to possible margins of error and the statistical concept that percentages close to 50% can still represent a majority depending on the distribution of the remaining votes.

Additionally, without information on the margin of error or the percentage of undecided voters, one cannot conclusively say that less than half of all likely voters supported Obama.