For Information, this is a unique type of polling never done before. It polls the same group of apx 3000 people on a rolling average of 400 per day. Other polls use random samples every time, this one uses the same people, but it takes a week to get back to them.
Some criticize it as inaccurate and biased for this reason. To be fair there is merit in the bias argument. There is a higher likelihood of selection bias if the sample is not representative there is no way to correct for it with new subjects. There could be observer bias because the pollsters and polled have an ongoing relationship and desire to keep them in the group. There is repeat bias, because the people polled will remember their previous answers and this will influence their subsequent answers.
It all comes down to how honest and fair minded the subjects are. Since they know they are in the poll and they see the results, they will be influenced by the results they see the others give. But its not all bad. It should be good at tracking a trend, especially when the results change dramatically like they have since Hillary’s bizarre medical episode(s). To move the needle in a big way like this requires overcoming some of the biases.
This poll is sensitive, too. It moves every day with 400 newer answers and dropping the 400 oldest answers. So it would move quicker than other polls that take a week to complete. Other polls seem to be heading in this direction if not as sharply, so again the trends it reveals may be its most important feature.
A controversial methodology, to be sure. But the people who run this poll are not fools - they are academics and political professionals with outstanding credentials. The poll is based on a RAND methodology, and has proved highly predictive in the past. It shows how real people change or do not change their mounds over time. I am informed that Trump’s lead is not due to the subjects here changing who they will vote for, but reflects instead their commitment to vote. Trump people are much more committed, and that’s why he’s ahead.
This poll gives Trump his best results. No one will ever accuse USC or the LAT of being conservative.