Dean Top Democrat in Online Poll

In an online contest that seemed more a milestone for Internet politics than a gauge of actual political strength, Democratic presidential contender Howard Dean far outpaced his party rivals in a vote organized by a liberal group.

Dean, according to results announced Friday by MoveOn.org, was the choice of 43.9% of the more than 317,000 participants. Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio -- widely viewed as a longshot among the Democratic candidates, ranked second, with 23.9%, and Sen. John F. Kerry of Massachusetts was third, with 15.7%.

Dean, who had been expected to win largely because of his vocal opposition to the war with Iraq and his own emphasis on Internet organizing, fell short of the 50% mark MoveOn said was needed to earn the group’s endorsement. But the group has said it may conduct future votes until a candidate crosses that threshold.

Kucinich’s showing seemed fueled by his strong stance against the war. And although Kerry last fall voted for the congressional resolution that authorized President Bush to use force against Iraq, he was highly critical of what he termed the administration’s “botched diplomacy” leading up to the war.

None of the other six announced Democratic candidates won more than 4% support. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina tallied 3.2%, followed by Rep. Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri, 2.4%, Sen. Bob Graham of Florida and former Sen. Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois, each with 2.2%, Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, 1.9%, and the Rev. Al Sharpton of New York, 0.53%.

MoveOn organizers said they were surprised that retired Gen. Wesley Clark picked up about 1% support as a write-in candidate. Clark, a military analyst for CNN during the war with Iraq, has not ruled out joining the race.

The survey was billed as a “virtual primary,” but was in effect something more modest -- an electronic straw poll by participants not independently verified as registered voters.

The results did not square with other measures of the Democratic race. Kucinich lags far behind most of his rivals in every major poll. Dean, although competitive with other major candidates in key states, has not led the field.

Whatever its political merits, the survey broke new ground for Internet activism. The number of voters, organizers pointed out, was greater than the projected combined turnout for next year’s Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary.

Although media companies and other organizations have done e-surveys during previous campaigns, never before has an online interest group attempted a test of presidential preferences on such a scale.

“From the perspective of the Internet in American politics, this was a very interesting and important moment,” said Jonah Seiger, an analyst of online politics at George Washington University. “Three hundred thousand-odd people probably feel more empowered.”

But Seiger noted: “MoveOn is not a state; it is an advocacy organization with a particular flavor of Democratic politics.”

The group was founded in 1998 to protest the impeachment of President Clinton. This year, it not only helped organize opposition to the Iraq war but has been sharply critical of the Federal Communications Commission’s recent decision to ease regulations on media ownership.

Its survey drew attention as the Democratic contenders continue to jockey for early positioning in what seems a wide-open race. Dean trumpeted the results as a victory that demonstrated his momentum in the race. Other candidates, who campaigned for support in the survey to varying degrees, largely ignored the outcome.

Skeptics noted that based on an earlier winnowing process, MoveOn gave an edge to Dean, Kucinich and Kerry in the distribution of promotional materials to the e-mail voters.

But the group’s leaders said they would leave the analysis of the results to others.

They claimed to have reached their objective -- increasing political participation and linking campaigns with potential donors.

“We wanted people to have a seat at the table, and they have taken it,” said Wes Boyd, treasurer of MoveOn.org’s political action committee.