Presidential Hopefuls Log On To Internet Campaigning

Presidential Candidates Take Campaigns Online

With the primaries right around the corner, presidential hopefuls are taking advantage of the “wired campaign” to build and maintain relationships with Internet voters, most notably the Democrats.

Following suit of the Democratic National Committee’s (DNC) revamping of its now user-friendly web site, candidates are enhancing their own pages in order to attract both supporters and money. Howard Dean, Wesley Clark, and Dick Gephardt, in particular, have generated the most Web traffic thus far, respectively. How, and why, has the Internet come to be so detrimental a tool in the campaign process?

In 2002, the DNC launched its new and improved site in order to play some “catch up” with the technology frontrunning Republicans. The DNC initiative resulted in a site allowing for visitors to join email campaigns, find information on issues of interest, and search for names and numbers of the media, local parties, and Congress members.

“People reading the site may be interested in an issue and when they want to help, we tell them how to,” stated DNC technology director Doug Kelly.

Ready and certainly willing to take over the White House, Democratic candidates have caught onto the web buzz. Dean has caught some attention with his stimulating site, http://www.deanforamerica.com. The doctor gives his patients the opportunity to read the official blog, peruse the photo gallery, or watch some DeanTV. There is even a version of each page en espanol, catering to the minority groups.

Clark’s campaign web site is quite similar to Dean’s; a Clark recruiter incentive program, Clark community network, and Clark gear store are its highlights.

Television forever changed politics in 1960 with the Nixon/Kennedy presidential debates. Now, the Internet has taken its place as the trendy and innovative way to publicize the presidential candidates and their goals.

“The biggest thing the Internet has done is to provide an alternative model for raising money,” says Carol Darr, director of the Institute for Politics, Democracy, and the Internet at George Washington University.

In the past, candidates aimed to raise funds as quickly as possible, thus turning to highly funded interest groups. Now, however, it seems that the Internet is playing “happy medium” with regards to the wonderful world of fundraising; small, online contributors are proving themselves just as useful as the Daddy Warbucks of America.

Dean’s success is a quintessential example. Between April and September of 2003, his online donation total reached an astounding $11 million. Moreover, the Campaign Finance Institute reports that of the total $25 million raised by Dean, 55 percent came from contributions under $200.

DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe, too, realizes the importance of small-dollar donations. “I am committed to building a Democratic party that is funded by our grassroots supporters. The Internet will help us achieve that goal.”

The Information Highway allows candidates to spread a message, only without actually having them present. It could be noted that essentially, the site visitors are the ones building these relationships.

Neighbors tell neighbors, friends tell friends, etc, etc, etc. Word-of-mouth is key to the survival and perpetuation of candidate sites. Referrals make up one-third of the Bush-Cheney campaign site.

Cybervoters are essential key pieces to achieving victory. Whether a site offers sweepstakes or contests, calls for fund-raising parties, offers opportunities to submit to a blog, or allows one to sign up to attend a “meetup,” there is no doubt that Internet campaigning is crucial at this point in time.

In the future, look for the web novelty to wear off. Nearly every candidate will, or at least should, have a full-fledged, creative, user-friendly site. But for now, those who have already taken advantage of this emerging publicity tool, like Dean and Gephardt, are among the campaign frontrunners.

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