(Orrin Hatch challenger) Bets 'Wiki' Movement Can Help Win Senate Election

[Elad]

Link to Story
Link to Peter Ashdown's website

Newcomer Bets 'Wiki' Open-Source Movement Can Help Win Senate Election

By Gene J. Koprowski
LinuxInsider
01/03/06 5:00 AM PT

A computer entrepreneur from Utah is launching a campaign to unseat incumbent Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) next year -- in what may be the most heavily Internet-reliant campaign to date, using blogs, chats and the "Wiki" open-source model.

Peter Ashdown is the founder of Xmission, Utah's oldest Internet Get Linux or Windows Managed Hosting Services with Industry Leading Fanatical Support. service provider (ISP). His Web site includes a blog and a monthly live chat session. But Ashdown's site takes public participation on his campaign Web site one step further -- opening his platform to all. The site is based on the "Wiki" open-source model made famous by Wikipedia.

Internet Tactics

A Democrat, Ashdown is hoping to take on the fundraising advantage Hatch enjoys in the predominantly Republican state with the Internet. "My small business Latest News about small business resourcefulness gives me the rock and my knowledge of the Internet is the sling. When Goliath falls, the people will be happy to see special interests fall along side of him," said Ashdown.

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It's natural to wonder whether a newcomer stands a chance at unseating a nationally known senator who has been in the Congress for 30 years. But a poll released in November shows that only 45 percent of Utah residents say they want Hatch re-elected. A total of 48 percent say it's time to pick someone new for the Senate, raising the possibility that Ashdown's campaign is not a completely Don Quixote, Man of LaMancha-like effort.

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[Jane Austin]

1. More power to him!

I wish him well.