Word.ws English Dictionary

Bradley effect

Bradley effect proper noun: a theory concerning observed discrepancies between opinion polls and election outcomes, according to which some white voters who intend to vote for a white candidate may tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for a non-white candidate, for fear of being accused of racism.

Proper noun

the Bradley effect

  1. (US) A theory concerning observed discrepancies between opinion polls and election outcomes, according to which some white voters who intend to vote for a white candidate may tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for a non-white candidate, for fear of being accused of racism.
    Synonyms:
    Wilder effect

Synonyms of Bradley effect

Origin of Bradley effect

Named after Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, an African-American who lost the 1982 California governor's race despite being ahead in voter polls going into the elections.

Questions about Bradley effect

What does Bradley effect mean?
Bradley effect means a theory concerning observed discrepancies between opinion polls and election outcomes, according to which some white voters who intend to vote for a white candidate may tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for a non-white candidate, for fear of being accused of racism.
What part of speech is Bradley effect?
Bradley effect is a proper noun.

Words near Bradley effect in the dictionary

  1. Bradlee
  2. Bradleigh
  3. Bradley
  4. Bradley Beach
  5. Bradley County
  6. Bradley effect
  7. Bradley Fold
  8. Bradley Land
  9. Bradley Stoke
  10. Bradleya
  11. Bradleyan

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: Bradley effect (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “Bradley effect.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/bradley_effect. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.