POLITICS ON THE WEB

Candidates wanting to keep in contact with voters have turned to a technological tool to help their grass-roots campaigns.

Area candidates say the Internet has helped them keep in touch with voters, discuss issues, answer questions and make voters more educated. Three local candidates operate Web sites for voters to access information.

Stan Wicks and Jason Crowell, both Republican candidates for a 158th District seat in the Missouri House of Representatives, and Scott County Circuit Judge David Dolan have launched Web sites for their campaigns. Dolan is an incumbent circuit judge for Scott and Mississippi counties.

Other statewide candidates and parties also support Web sites with information for voters.

Because there is no clearinghouse for political Web sites, it is difficult to guess the number of candidate sites that exist, said Jim Grebing, director of communications for Missouri Secretary of State Rebecca McDowell Cook.

The secretary of state's Web site at http://mosl.sos.state.mo.us provides links to candidate sites, but only if the candidate supplied an address when filing for office, Grebing said.

The League of Women Voters provides Web links at its www.lwv.org site and at www.dnet.org.

The league is "just looking for ways to reach the voters, and the Internet is one way that a lot of people like to get their information," said Janice Miller, treasurer of the Cape Girardeau chapter of League of Women Voters. She attended a recent seminar about the Internet, sponsored by the league.

"You're even seeing Web addresses on yard signs as you drive by," she said.

Local candidates with Web addresses have posted them on signs or published them in advertising. Choosing an address is often as important as a campaign slogan.

Internet registrants have snatched domain names -- 5 million in the first three months of 2000, or nearly 40 names a minute. These new names are often getting harder to remember because they tend to get longer as more sites are developed.

Domain names help Internet users find sites without using numeric addresses assigned to each computer. Political candidates also have to consider how easy it is for a user to remember their Web address.

Wicks lists his Web address, www.wicksforrep.com, on yard signs scattered throughout the city. He writes in an open letter that he created the Web page "as a forum to collect and distribute information regarding not only this candidacy but also for the term that I would serve" in Jefferson City.

The Internet is a "new way of life," Wicks said, starting the site "because I knew a lot of people were dabbling in it. Even people that don't have a computer can watch Web TV."

Most of the 1,105 visitors to the site have been "just browsing," Wicks said, but the site offers them a chance to look at the information posted.

Visitors to the site can cast their vote, learn about the candidate and his stance on "hot topics," make requests for yard signs and even e-mail messages to Wicks.

The site is also a link found on the Secretary of State's Web site.

Jason Crowell said Web sites are dramatic engines for grass-roots campaigns.

"It's just another way to ask people" for a chance to earn their vote, he said.

His Web site, www.jasoncrowell.com, includes a biography, endorsements and campaign updates, and allows visitors to request yard signs and make donations. It lists his stance on issues and provides a link for visitors seeking to register as Missouri voters.

Crowell said it is important to communicate with the people in the district, and a Web site does just that.

"With more and more people beginning to use the Internet, it is a way that voters can check my views in the comfort of their own home at their own pace," he said. "We're looking for ways to get the information out there. We don't want to push it down their throats but make it accessible."

Sometimes when people don't catch a TV commercial or hear a radio ad or even read a newspaper article, the Web site can keep them informed, he said. People visiting the site can see the stances on issues either in "quick blurbs" or in-depth for the "policy wonkers" who want more information.

The site has recorded 1,230 visitors since June 1.

Circuit Judge David Dolan has posted information about himself and his campaign at www.judgedaviddolan.com. He is an incumbent Democrat seeking re-election. He faces Associate Circuit Judge David Mann in his bid for office.

Dolan said Web sites make sense because "we live in a computer age."

Although not everyone has a home computer, it's unlikely Web sites and e-mail will replace face-to-face contact between candidates and voters, Dolan said. But the Internet is "just an electronic way to access" information.

Dolan used much of his brochure literature on the Web site so people could see it electronically if they didn't get a mailing or personal visit. The site lists his experience in office and information about his role in the circuit's drug court.

It used to be most people didn't have VCRs in their homes, but today nearly 95 percent do. It's likely that in the next five years or so, the same will be true of computers, Dolan said.

The Internet and e-mail offer great potential for changing the course of campaigning, Grebing said. It will likely change campaigns within the next two to four years.

Candidates could easily use e-mail to write notes to a network of supporters or to send out advertising and brochures without incurring printing costs or even as a means of soliciting donations to buy TV commercials, Grebing said.

"The market has yet to be tapped," he said.

Yet some sites remain static and aren't being regularly updated, Grebing said. Those sites offer an initial explanation or cover page "but for many campaigns it's not a high priority."

Grebing said the information on a Web site isn't always reliable and often "is like reading their brochure." He suggests voters check independent sites like Project Vote Smart at www.vote-smart.org for more independent assessment on races.

Candidate Web sites are "giving people more access to information, which is what the Internet does, but how people choose to use it remains to be seen," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.