Parties, Candidates and Citizens On-Line - Åbo Akademi

elements of interest pluralism (cf. Bimber 1999) and opportunities for alternative voices
to be heard.
Electoral competition on the candidate level
How could electoral competition be looked at on the candidate level? What candidate
related circumstances could be relevant to candidate-level electoral competition on the
internet? In the following section, theoretical considerations concerning candidate-level
electoral competition on the internet will be made in order to further develop a
conceptual framework for the study.
The picture concerning electoral competition is somewhat more unclear on the
candidate level as compared to the party level. In single-member district, First Past the
Post, or similar plurality-majority election systems, the size of a candidate’s party should
be highly influential in determining whether and how strongly a candidate campaigns, also
on-line. Since only two parties usually have a realistic chance at winning the election (cf.
Lijphart 1994: 20), the candidates of the minor and fringe parties will not put much effort
or money into developing websites. Several studies conducted on election campaigns in
single-member districts, i.e. plurality-majority election contexts, have to some extent
examined the effects of party size on the candidate level from this inter-party perspective
(e.g. Davis 1999; Greer & LaPointe 2003; Herrnson & Stokes 2003; Kamarck 1999; 2002;
Margolis et al. 2003; Sadow & James 1999). The results of these studies point in both
directions vis-à-vis the patterns of electoral competition; some have noticed that minor
party candidates tend to use the web at a somewhat higher rate than major party
candidates (cf. Herrnson & Stokes 2003; Sadow & James 1999). Other findings point in
the opposite direction (cf. Gibson & MacAllister 2003; Greer & LaPointe 2003; Kamarck
2002). In most studies conducted, however, major party candidates outperform their
rivals in terms of website sophistication (cf. Davis 1999; Greer & LaPointe 2003; Margolis
et al 1997; Margolis & Resnick 2000: 53-74). The latter results possibly indicate that there
is a need for full time staff in order to produce and manage a stylish website (Margolis &
Resnick 2000: 16). Some exceptions to this overall pattern have however been noticed in
Green parties and, in some cases, Liberal parties who are keeping equal pace in terms of
website sophistication, suggesting party ideological ethos might have an influence on web
campaigning (Gibson & McAllister 2003; Gibson & Römmele 2003).
What about other election systems? Is it also plausible to a priori assume that all
candidates of, for instance, a major party are competing on equal footing in a system
where each party nominates several candidates in each district? In Finland, mainly due to
the mechanics of the d’Hondt formula (Taagapera & Shugart 1989: 31-2), many
candidates nominated by each party act as supplementary candidates in order to add votes
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