Alaska outposts vote online

Internet voting got a chilly response in its Alaska debut. Just 35 people

cast ballots online Jan. 24 in the state's Republican primary straw poll.

Considering that 56 people were registered to vote online, the turnout wasn't

terrible. It's the registration drive that was disappointing: 35,000 people

were eligible.

According to Christy Adkinson, director of marketing for VoteHere.net, the

Internet voting company that sponsored the straw poll, the GOP didn't promote

the event enough. To participate in the online vote, Alaskans had to fill

out a form mailed to them by the party, and only 56 rural residents followed

through. "People either had not received the mailing or they threw them

away thinking they were junk mail," Adkinson said.

If nothing else, the poll proved that George W. Bush is the clear winner

with the dogsled set, garnering 23 online votes. John McCain took second

place with six, Steve Forbes snared four, and Alan Keyes had two.