For the second time in two months, a polling organization embraced by media outlets has admitted to fabricating its results. This time, the deception lasted much longer, fooled far more organizations, and appears to have inflicted greater electoral damage.

In August, Median Strategies admitted to making up polls that showed socialist Francesca Hong leading Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary by more than 20 percentage points and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass leading challenger Nithya Raman by nearly 12 points. Hong instead lost to David Crowley by 0.5 points.

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