"ALLOW ME TO quote the agri-food exchange prices at 18.00, obtained from a number of independent producers," began one tweet. "Tomatoes [up to] 33.7 [zloty]... beetroots [are at] 8.9," said the next. In the run-up to elections in Poland, Twitter tends to be full of such market talk. Not because tweeters take a sudden interest in vegetable prices, but because, like two-thirds of European countries, Poland bans the publication of polls just before elections. Tomatoes (in Polish, POmidory) are code for the Civic Platform (PO), a centre-right party; red beetroots signify the Left Democratic Alliance.
Across Europe the median pre-ballot blackout period lasts for two days. In Italy, Montenegro and Slovakia it lasts for more than two weeks. States justify such speech-gagging measures as a useful time for reflection. They add that muzzling pollsters reduces the risk that an inaccurate poll at the last minute will influence the result. Most countries also ban...
The Economist: Europe