Sarah Elks, March 12, 2009

IT worked for Barack Obama. Now Lawrence Springborg and the LNP are using the internet to bring in donations.

Political scientists have identified Mr Obama's savvy use of the net to secure thousands of small donations as one of the reasons his campaign budget far outstripped that of John McCain.

Now the Liberal National Party is following in Mr Obama's presidential footsteps by asking supporters to click on a giant red "Donate Now" button (next to a smiling Mr Springborg) on the party's website.

LNP state director Michael O'Dwyer said the strategy had been "remarkably successful" since it was launched three weeks before the election was called.

While Mr O'Dwyer would not detail the funds raised, he said donations of between $10 and a few thousand dollars had been received. "It's certainly an activity we'll be continuing," he said.

Labor has ruled out introducing similar fundraising techniques. The party's campaign director Anthony Chisholm said its website was for engaging with voters, not seeking donations.

Apart from fundraising, the internet and social networking sites are playing a greater role in this campaign than ever before in Queensland politics.

Labor leader Anna Bligh last month became the first politician in the nation to call an election over the internet.

In the number of social networking sites used, Ms Bligh is trumping Mr Springborg.

Ms Bligh is a regular on Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, Tumblr and FriendFeed.

Mr Springborg dabbles in YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

In the online friends stakes, Mr Springborg has 1065 Facebook friends to Ms Bligh's 847. On Twitter -- a microblogging site where users post pithy updates -- Ms Bligh is leading with 669 followers compared with Mr Springborg's 145.



Source: The Australian