Goucher Pollster Kromer Launches Her Own Survey Firm

From Maryland Matters:

By Josh Kurtz
August 24, 2020

Mileah K. Kromer, the Goucher College political scientist who is one of Maryland’s most prominent pollsters, has launched her own survey research firm.

Kromer’s new company, Federal Hill Research Group — named for her Baltimore City neighborhood — aims to attract business from nonprofits, advocacy groups and government agencies. This will be a side gig for Kromer: She’ll retain her position as director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher, which runs well-regarded student-conducted statewide polls.

“I’ve developed a lot of expertise in Maryland public opinion,” said Kromer, who added that she hopes potential clients will value her experience and resist the growth of “do-it-yourself polls, which I think are actually pretty dangerous. They can distort public opinion and lead to bad decisions.”

Kromer said her new firm would not conduct political horse race polls or do broad looks at voter opinion on key issues and political players in the state — the bread and butter of the Goucher Poll.

Kromer has been at Goucher for eight years. She previously worked for four years at Elon University as the assistant director of the Elon University Poll, where she designed surveys on North Carolina politics and policy. Before that, she spent five years working at Louisiana State University’s Public Policy Research Lab while completing her Ph.D. in political science.

jkurtz@marylandmatters.org

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