TechPresident reader Patrick Rodriguez sent in a chart he compiled showing which presidential candidates are hot on Digg, and whose stories are most frequently buried (hidden by users).

According to Rodriguez' findings,

Barack Obama is the most popular on the site, with 841 stories about him submitted. Ninety-five of those stories were buried, which means that he has a bury rate of 11.2%. Out of 16 stories that made it to the front page (Digg's holy grail), three were buried.

Why is this interesting? Because you can learn a lot about a candidate's popularity and their supporters' approach to the web by paying attention to the bury rate. For example, Ron Paul -- not a popular candidate nationwide but one with a fair amount of online grassroots support -- has 113 stories submitted but a whopping 47 stories buried, giving him a bury rate of 41.6%. As Rodriguez notes in the introduction to his chart, "supporters of Congressman Ron Paul have been accused of 'spamming' Digg. Those opposed to Ron Paul stories, for whatever reason, are now systematically burying them." So Paul's high bury rate suggests that his supporters are seeking to create an artificial impression of support by spamming Digg with bogus or repeated stories.

At the same time, Sam Brownback and Bill Richardson both have zero stories buried, which suggests that no one is actually reading stories about them. So to maintain a healthy presence on Digg, it looks like candidates must stay in the middle ground between too many buries (astroturf) and none at all (no support at all).

In other Digg news, Digg has unveiled a special section devoted to the 2008 elections. It only show three stories so far, but we'll keep an eye on it.