Obama’s Online Activists

Among Americans who go online, voters supporting Barack Obama (26%) were more likely to post political content on the internet than were supporters of John McCain (15%). Online Obama voters were also more likely to engage politically on social networks, donate money online, sign up for email alerts and volunteer online than were online supporters of McCain. However, the disparity in online activism between the two candidates’ supporters was not the result of access. In fact, McCain voters were more likely to be internet users than were Obama voters (83% vs. 76%). This reflects the fact that Republicans in general have higher amounts of education and income than Democrats — and those are two of the strongest predictors of internet use. Read More