For the second time in Bolesławiec’s history, we organized an exit poll, a survey among people who had cast their votes in the election. We surveyed nearly 1,200 residents of Bolesławiec. The results we obtained matched the official results announced later perfectly.
Twenty-seven interviewers asked people leaving polling stations whom they had voted for. The young people were warmly received by the residents of Bolesławiec, although not everyone wanted to say whom they had voted for.
Thanks to the data collected, we published the exact results of the mayoral election immediately after 10:00 p.m. on Sunday. This information received more than 7,000 views on election night—in less than two hours—which demonstrates the demand for and great interest in the results. To date, the article has been viewed more than 15,300 times, while the information about the poll results for the councils has been viewed more than 16,300 times.
While we were one hundred percent certain of the presidential poll results, already while collecting information outside the polling stations we knew that the results of the second poll, for the city and county councils, would differ from the official results. Voters admitted that they had had trouble making their choices. They did not remember or did not know the candidates’ names. They said they had been “taking a shot” at candidates, voting for a list or for the person in the first position, sometimes without remembering that person’s name. We also knew that the choice of a particular councillor could sometimes be decided by a difference of just a few tenths of a percentage point, which cannot be captured in a poll of this kind.
The young people participating in the project demonstrated perseverance, reliability and great commitment to their work. We would like to thank Dominika Baszczeńska, Daria Brodzikowska, Katarzyna Cichewicz, Patrycja Domańska, Marta Gołoszewska, Oliver Hetel, Monika Jewtuch, Tomasz Kawiak, Agnieszka Kłosowska, Kamila Kruk, Monika Łach, Łukasz Łysakowski, Malwina Makaro, Paulina Merek, Maja Morawska, Martyna Mularczyk, Paulina Niemczuk, Kamila Nogalska, Karolina Salej, Monika Siniak, Krystyna Stawinoga, Miłosz Stojka, Paulina Sudół, Monika Urbaniak, Michał Uziej, Anna Wojnowska and Kamil Żółtański.
They supported us and became involved in the initiative: Jacek Jurkiewicz (Zespół Szkół Budowlanych), Beata Sulska (II Liceum Ogólnokształcące), Katarzyna Żak (I Liceum Ogólnokształcące) and Zuzanna Mróz (I Liceum Ogólnokształcące).
The co-organizer of the poll was Bolesławiecki Ośrodek Kultury Międzynarodowe Centrum Ceramiki.