Source: EconLog
by Scott Sumner
“When I moved to Massachusetts in 1982, major cities such as Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline had rent control. Massachusetts is also one of the most Democratic states in the country. Today, Massachusetts doesn’t have rent control. So how did that happen? In 1994, Massachusetts had a referendum on rent control, and voters opted to ban it statewide. This is an almost perfect illustration of why I don’t trust public opinion polls on policy issues. Polls are useful when it comes to clear issues such as which of two candidates people intend to vote for. But they are not a good way of ascertaining public opinion on policy issues. If you looked at the poll results above, you might assume that rent control has been adopted almost everywhere in America, even in highly Republican states.” (07/23/25)