GOP Rep. Bass sued by New Hampshire over ‘push polling’ charges

The state attorney general of New Hampshire is accusing Rep. Charlie Bass (R-N.H.) of “push polling” during his campaign against Democrat Ann Kuster. 

A lawsuit from the state seeks $400,000 in fines, or $1,000 for each of the 400 calls that were purportedly made, according to a report in the Concord Monitor.

{mosads}In a push poll, a candidate’s campaign uses the guise of a phone survey to spread negative information about an opponent. Push polling is legal in New Hampshire so long as the campaign identifies that it is calling on a candidate’s behalf, which the state attorney general says the Bass campaign failed to do.

Bass’s campaign spokesman, Scott Tranchemontagne, denied the allegations in a statement.

“The Bass Victory Committee strongly denies the attorney general’s allegation and will vigorously defend the civil suit. The poll in question was a legitimate message testing survey, not a push poll,” Tranchemontagne said. 

“Our survey was the same type of message testing poll conducted by virtually every major candidate for a federal office. It tested voters’ attitudes and opinions among a relatively small sample of voters, unlike a push poll, which targets a much larger group of voters with the intent of negatively persuading the voter,” he added.

Bass narrowly defeated Kuster in 2010, 49 percent to 46.