Tech industry: Obama will win, but we prefer Romney
Charles Dharapak/AP
By
Eric Katz
Study finds tech executives think Republican challenger would be better for industry.
A majority of technology executives think President Obama will be reelected, but consider Republican challenger Mitt Romney to be better for their business, a new study has found.
The survey, conducted by international law firm DLA Piper, found 76 percent of senior executives, advisers and venture capitalists involved in the technology industry predict Obama will get a second term in office, while only 41 percent think such a result would positively affect the technology sector. Sixty-four percent of respondents said the same about a Romney victory.
The results marked a drastic shift from 2008, when the same survey found 60 percent of respondents felt Obama would be better for the technology industry than his opponent, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
Sixty-eight percent of tech experts and investors think regardless of who wins in November, the 2012 political debate will result in more regulation for the private equity industry.
The survey was conducted in late September and early October, when the law firm said it sent the questionnaire to thousands of executives via email.