Abstract
This article analyzes various strategic, structural, and individual factors that explain the use of online campaigning in Germany, comparing their relative importance as explanatory variables in national, state, and local elections. Based on candidate surveys of three German elections (at national, state, and local levels) in 2009 and 2010, the results show that strategic and structural variables, such as party membership or the perceived share of indecisive voters, do most to explain online campaigning. Internet-related perceptions are explanatory in a few cases at the state and local levels; if candidates think that other candidates campaign online they feel obliged to use online media during the election campaign. However, genuine political predictors are still very significant at all federal levels.
Metag, J