IT pros lean 'independent' politically, survey says

IT workers polled about U.S. politics and the government's role in regulation generally tilted toward free-market principles and independent attitudes about political parties.

The Washington, D.C.-based trade group Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), in coordination with Rasmussen Reports, last August and September polled 600 IT workers about their political leanings. The respondents' answers were matched up with personal information they gave about their gender, race and nationality. Of those polled, about three-quarters were white males typically earning more than $80,000 per year. Politically, 35% counted themselves as Republicans, 26% as Democrats and 40% as Independents.

When asked "What are the top issues for the next president?" the bulk of the responses overall were Iraq, terrorism and the economy. Healthcare and the environment were mentioned least often.

Half of the respondents said they think free trade helps the economy, but 37% said it hurts. IT workers less than 29 years old answered negatively more often; workers aged 30 to 39 supported free trade most often of all those polled.

About eight in 10 of those polled said the "government should avoid regulating the Internet as it does telephone service," with older workers, Democrats and women more inclined toward regulation.

On a question about "who should be primarily responsible for protecting consumer privacy on the Internet," 60% answered "the individuals themselves," 19% thought that companies providing Internet services should, and 12% believed it was the mainly the responsibility of the government. CompTIA in its findings said women and African-Americans favored a government role.

The 600 workers polled were about evenly split between favoring and opposing tax credits for IT workers to get training and certification.

As to what government should do about protecting intellectual property, 39% of those polled answered the government should do more, with 76% of IT workers who graduated only from high school supporting an active government role.

One thing CompTIA noted in its survey, which can be found here, is that 90% of the IT workers polled were born in the United States or Canada; the remainder were from India, China, Russia, and Eastern and Western Europe. CompTIA stated it undertook the survey to highlight the role of the IT worker and encourage those seeking elected office to court their votes actively.