The first big moment on election night in the UK, after polls close, happens at 10pm sharp. This is when the exit poll is released and the media commentary floodgates are reopened after a day of media silence, according to broadcasting rules.
Lots of polls are published during an election campaign, but the exit poll is different. While most other polls are snapshots of voting intention at a point in time, the exit poll is essentially what everyone wishes a poll could be – a prediction of the election result.
The exit poll is paid for by a media consortium made up of the BBC, Sky News and ITV. The polling and market research company Ipsos collects the data, which is analysed by the expert exit poll team from a secret bunker in central London.
