Rahil Prakash Admits Planting Fake Polls in 4 Democratic Primaries
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Aug 27
Rahil Prakash Admits Planting Fake Polls in 4 Democratic Primaries
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 27
Summary
21-year-old Rahil Prakash told The Guardian he created a fake polling firm, Median Strategies, and released fabricated surveys in four Democratic primary contests as a “short-term social experiment.”
The fake polls spread quickly because they looked credible, he said, and were picked up across the political media ecosystem with little scrutiny.
One Wisconsin governor’s race poll showed a Democratic Socialist candidate ahead by 20 points; the report says such misinformation may have influenced late campaign strategy before she lost by less than 1%.
Prakash said he was not paid by any campaign and did not use the hoax for betting-market gains, a distinction that matters because lies alone are generally protected speech unless tied to fraud.
The episode underscores how vulnerable modern campaign coverage remains to polished disinformation and raises fresh concerns about fake data shaping election decisions without clear legal consequences.