Panel recruitment changes matter

Small procedural choices in long‑running survey panels — e.g., switching from random‑digit dialing to address‑based sampling, targeted oversamples, and the use of online vs. phone interviewing — change the composition and comparability of trend data. When cumulative recruitment response is low (here 3%), those design details become the dominant determinants of which voices are amplified in headline results. — Public and media interpretation of polls (and any claims about rising or falling public opinion) depends on these methodological facts; without them, debate about mandates, elections or policy priorities can be misled by shifting sample frames rather than real attitude change.