Samuel Lubell, Pioneer Political Pollster, Dies at 75

Samuel Lubell, a public opinion pollster who pioneered the techniques of neighborhood interviews with voters, has died in a Los Angeles nursing home. He was 75 and had suffered a stroke.

Lubell, who died Aug. 16, was known for his accurate predictions in political campaigns of the 1950s and ‘60s. He retired in 1976.

He was known for combining scientific approaches to issues and candidates with friendly interviews. He based his predictions on trends and history in selected areas of the country and interviewed hundreds of voters who had demonstrated consistency over the years.

Lubell began as a journalist in New York after graduating from Columbia University School of Journalism. In 1933 he was given the school’s Pulitzer Traveling Scholarship and over the years worked for the Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch, the Washington Post and the Washington Herald. He also was a frequent contributor to the Saturday Evening Post.

He began his public opinion polls after World War II and one of the first to draw him to national attention was an analysis of President Harry S. Truman’s surprise 1948 triumph over Thomas E. Dewey.

He was the author of six books and also wrote a syndicated political column, “The People Speak.”

He is survived by his wife, Helen, two sons and a sister.