SAN ANTONIO – Here at KSAT, we have partnered with two local non-profits to tap into public opinion surrounding issues that are most important to people in our community.

Through quarterly non-partisan polling, the Bexar Facts-KSAT-San Antonio Report Poll provides a deeper understanding of issues that are on the minds of people who live in our area.

Demonte Alexander, one of the leaders at Bexar Facts, joined Leading SA Sunday morning to talk about the process of forming a poll and collecting public opinions.

For starters, we get a lot of questions about how the poll is put together. Alexander said there are several elements involved in the process.

“Opinion polls are conducted by soliciting opinions from the public. We sample those opinions by extrapolating the results to make predictions about future policies or future opinions, depending on the population. Each polling agency sets up its own methodology and updates updated on a regular basis,” Alexander said.

This may sound complicated, but Alexander said there is an easier way to simplify the process.

“The best, the easiest way I can explain it is if you’d like a bowl of soup. If you’re going to make a pot of soup, you’re going to take a spoon sample to taste it. If it’s at the right proportions, then you’re wanting it to give you an idea of what the whole pot tastes like. And that’s the easy example that people seem to understand,” Alexander said.

These polls happen every few months, and there is always interesting data that is revealed.

“I think that the thing that stood out to me the most was probably Greg Abbott’s approval rating falling by 25% since April… there’s a 30% drop in Democratic support, 28% drop in independent support and 13% drop in Republican support of the governor since April,” Alexander said.

One of the most polarizing sections of the poll is the part that asks community members what they view as the most important issues and problems here.

“This is the crux of why Bexar Facts was created. We want to be able to figure out what the problems are in our community, and we want to be able to help solve those problems by using data instead of making those decisions in the dark. Unfortunately, domestic violence and child abuse has really been on the top, although these topics didn’t dominate it. But those are the ones at the top. These are the ones that show up at the top of our polls. And so, what we would like to do is now take this information to our elected officials and to those leaders and say, ‘Hey, you know, our community has spoken. You know, now it’s our job to amplify those lessons and try to help find solutions,’” Alexander said.

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