In Advance of the Ames Straw Poll, Iowans Connect With Their Government Online

By Chris McGovern, Manager of Research Development with Connected Nation

Tomorrow, Republican presidential candidates are going to be reaching out to potential voters at the Ames Straw Poll. While the Straw Poll (which has been called a cross between a “political convention and a county fair”) has been going on for over two decades, a portion of Iowans are using more high-tech ways to connect with their government officials.

According to research from Connect Iowa, 69% of Iowa Internet users (representing approximately 1.4 million Iowa adults) go online to use e-government applications.





This includes approximately 886,000 Internet users who go online to search for information or policies and 847,000 who conduct online transactions with government offices (such as e-filing taxes and filling out forms online). In addition, approximately 534,000 adults communicate with Iowa state government offices online, 447,000 go online to communicate with their local government offices, and one out of five (20%, or approximately 399,000 adults) say they use the Internet to stay in touch with elected officials or candidates.


Will you be following the Straw Poll results online? Do you plan to use broadband to get involved in the upcoming election? How do you think the growth in mobile applications will impact the 2012 elections? Let us know on Twitter or Facebook.