Political Research, or, Who Are All of These Republicans?

This week, the Republican National Convention is going down here in St. Paul – right next door to us, in fact. It’s an exciting time to be working downtown, what with all the nicely-dressed media, nicely-dressed politicians, and nicely-dressed police officers. So we could hardly let it all go by unmentioned. But we are, of course, a staunchly a-political organization so you won’t read any ravings here. Instead, we’d like to keep the conversation above party lines and focus on the higher ideal of “research for all.”

Which brings me to that great tool for small “d” democracy, the Internet. In today’s post, and in celebration of the RNC, we’ll point out some great online resources for political research, including ways to learn about Americans’ political views, public policy feelings, voter turnout, and even politically-segmented technology use.

Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
The Pew Research Center is the best source for political polling research online. Find surveys detailing where people find political information, how many are likely to turn out for voting, and what issues they’re most interested in.

2008 Statistical Abstract – Elections 
The Statistical Abstract is an excellent source for data on, well, just about anything – including elections. Use this site for finding research on how states and congressional districts voted for House and Senate members, statistics on minority elected officials, voting-age population, voter participation, and much more.

Roper Center – 2008 Presidential Election Center
Find public opinion polls on McCain and Obama, as well as polls on Americans’ views of the economy, health care, immigration, and other public policy topics.

Rasmussen Reports – Demographic Notes 
The Rasmussen Reports polling firm provides numerous reports on the 2008 presidential race, including these notes on candidate following by income, gender, race, and wine vs. beer preference.

Election Assistance Commission
This government agency was created in 2002 to keep track of election administration. Among other duties, they produce reports tracking voter turnout and ballots cast by state.

Social Profile of Political Candidates
Forrester provides technology profiles by political preference. Bear in mind, these are broad, but may provide some insight into how people in particular parties use technology.