Do Facebook fans equal campaign momentum?

Facebook sent out a snapshot of House races on Monday that raises the interesting question of whether increasing support on social networks equals an actual boost at the polls.

In one of the races spotlighted, incumbent Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) trails Republican challenger Daniel Webster in the latest polls, but Grayson has a significant lead over Webster when it comes to Facebook fans: He boasts more than 30,000, compared to fewer than 5,000 for Webster. Grayson has been updating his Facebook page more than three times a day for the past two weeks, but the strategy has apparently yet to gain traction with the local electorate.

Moving to Boca Raton, where Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.) and challenger Allen West are locked in a tight race, it's the Republican West who has gained traction on Facebook, with 37,000 fans compared to fewer than 2,000 for Klein. The results of these two races should be an interesting case study on the efficacy of social media as a tool for campaigning as opposed to fundraising.

West is among the politicians who've seen the biggest bump in their Facebook fan support over the last week, along with Grayson, Rep. Michele Bachman (R-Minn.) and former NFL player John Runyan, who is running for Congress as a Republican in New Jersey's 3rd district. Bachman, West and Grayson also hold the largest advantages in terms of their number of Facebook fans.

Overall, the most prolific candidates on Facebook are all Republicans attempting to unseat incumbents: Ilario Pantano in North Carolina, Martha Roby in Alabama, Nan Hayworth in New York and Scott Tipton in Colorado. Those are four more races worth watching to gauge the potential return on campaign efforts made via the popular social network.