In 1994, California put live returns from a statewide election on the Internet, becoming the first state to do so.
Since then over half of the states, 28, have joined California in offering online election results, says Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation (CVF). Twenty-nine states are posting a blow-by-blow account of the race between George Bush and Al Gore on the Web today, along with tallies from congressional, state and local contests.
“I think it’s a great trend, because a lot of the news coverage has been focused around the presidential race, while voters are interested in campaigns up and down the ballot,” says Alexander, whose non-profit, nonpartisan organization wants to use new technologies to improve democracy. “I think by making this information available, it helps all voters get involved in election night.”
Most of the sites offering online election results are run by a state agency, typically the secretary of state’s office. Florida has a particularly comprehensive, easy-to-read site that’s linked to each of the state’s 67 counties and is being hosted by Florida’s Division of Elections.
Every state is using the Internet to educate voters about candidates running for state and local office, according to CVF. A partial list of states putting today’s election returns on the Internet follows:
Alaska
State of Alaska Division of Elections
Arizona
California
Florida
Indiana
Indiana General Election Results 2000
Louisiana
Louisiana Secretary of State Election Results Inquiry
Maryland
Maryland State Board of Elections
Michigan
Missouri
Missouri Secretary of State Election Night Reporting
Nebraska
Nebraska Secretary of State Web Site
Nevada
Nevada Secretary of State Online Results Systems
New Mexico
New Mexico Unofficial General Election Results By Office
Ohio
Ohio Secretary of State General Election Results
Oklahoma
Rhode Island
Rhode Island Board of Elections
South Dakota
South Dakota Secretary of State
Tennessee
Tennessee Secretary of State Division of Elections
Virginia
Washington
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