We live in a world where a Rebecca Black video spreads like wildfire throughout the web in a matter of hours. Where a new iPhone release event is followed by millions on live blogs. Where news can be tracked via twitter faster than any traditional news outlet can ever dream of.
So, how do President Obama and the Republican candidates compare when it comes to social media?
| Twitter followers | Facebook likes | Alexa web rank | Klout score | |
| Barack Obama | 12,866,203 | 25,470,067 | 1,061 | 91 |
| Mitt Romney | 365,215 | 1,515,300 | 4,173 | 86 |
| Rick Santorum | 157,166 | 170,056 | 3,895 | 83 |
| Newt Gingrich | 1,445,794 | 292,752 | 7,928 | 83 |
| Ron Paul | 257,999 | 897,378 | 2,228 | 78 |
It should come as no surprise that the President dominates in all of our metrics. As President, Barack Obama simply has more exposure to social media.
What’s interesting though, is how Rick Santorum has been able to become the second place candidate despite having the worse overall showing in our chart. Newt Gingrich’s results are sort of a mixed bag–strong twitter presence, mediocre Facebook presence, and a weak Alexa web site ranking. Personally, I expected a stronger showing from Ron Paul, considering all of his vocal followers online.
What’s important though, is whether or not the candidates can translate their social media prowess to votes on election day. My bets are on Romney because he has a well diversified base of supporters, as well as the money and resources to ensure a unified message throughout all communication channels. I think Ron Paul has a very interesting online presence–like I said earlier, Paul has some very energetic supporters. Yet, this doesn’t always show at the polls, which leads me to question the political clout of his supporter base. Which candidate do you think is most effective at energizing his online supporters to vote?
Our Election '12 