Dear Arne,
All good information and well stated.
It may well be that the statistical methods are in fact more accurate in doing the _desired_ job (and there is good evidence to show that this is in fact true). If you insist on a formal but inaccurate "count" which is known to miss people, and to be farther from the actual value, you are exalting form over substance.
Did you want a democrat estimate or a GOP estimate? I'll take a count any day.
mav out