Etymology

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.

Proper noun

the Bradley effectCategory:English lemmas#BRADLEYEFFECTCategory:English proper nouns#BRADLEYEFFECTCategory:English uncountable nouns#BRADLEYEFFECTCategory:English multiword terms#BRADLEYEFFECTCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BRADLEYEFFECTCategory:Pages with entries#BRADLEY%20EFFECTCategory:Pages with 1 entry#BRADLEY%20EFFECT

1. (USCategory:American English#BRADLEYEFFECT, politicsCategory:en:Politics#BRADLEYEFFECT) 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.

   Synonym: Wilder effect