Electronic Voting in Finland: The Internet and its Political Applications

Abstract

Being a rich Western European country, Finland certainly belongs to the wired world. Based on a comparison of different aspects related to the information and communication technology (ICT) sector, such as research, development and employment, the OECD (2000) classifies Finland as a high ICT-intensive country. According to survey results, most Finnish households seem to be wired to the web. This is a relatively high proportion in the European context, although other Nordic countries and the Netherlands are ahead of Finland in this respect. According to other survey results, 61 per cent of Finns claim that they use the Internet personally. The usage is not evenly spread, however. Among young Finns, practically everyone uses the Internet. Moreover, students and professionals use the Internet much more extensively than other professional groups. Yet, unlike in many other countries, one cannot trace a substantial gender gap in the use of the Internet in Finland (Flash EB 88, 2001; Flash EB 112, 2002; see also Grönlund’s contribution in this volume).