Presidential Election 2012, By The Numbers
by Dave Jamieson | Tuesday, November 6, 2012, 12:00 PM (CST)
Whether you're talking about cash on hand or the path to 270, all elections boil down to hard numbers. Here at HuffPost, we've been adding, subtracting and carrying the zero for a solid year and a half now, the math more difficult than ever in an age of super PACs. Like you, we're good and ready for the final tallies. But before all the votes are counted, here are a few of our favorite numbers from 2012. Feel free to add your own in the comments section.
- Total money spent by Obama and the pro-Obama super PAC Priorities USA:$853 million
- Total money spent by Romney and the pro-Romney super PAC Restore Our Future: $752.3 million
- Minimum number of miles Obama flew during his last day campaigning before Election Day: 1,780
- Minimum number of miles Romney flew: 1,734
- Super PACs registered in the 2012 election cycle: 1,063
- Total money raised by those super PACs: $661 million
- Money given to conservative super PACs by the family of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson: $54 million
- Number of "likes" for Rick Perry's anti-gay campaign ad "Strong" on YouTube, as of this posting: 26,761
- Number of "dislikes": 779,768
- Total campaign stops by Obama: 227
- Total campaign stops by Romney: 294
- Total campaign stops by Romney in Ohio: 46
- U.S. unemployment rate on Election Day: 7.9 percent
- States where gay marriage is on the ballot this year: 4 (Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington State)
- Money spent on negative ads attacking Romney: $295 million
- Money spent on negative ads attacking Obama: $351 million
- Total Republican primary presidential debates: 20
- General election debates (including vice-presidential): 4
- Minimum number of columns by New York Times columnist Gail Collins that allude to the Romney family dog, Seamus: 43
- Mentions of Seamus by former GOP presidential hopeful Rick Santorum while on the campaign trail: 1
- Number of super PAC donors who've given at least half a million dollars this cycle: 209
- Campaign debt left to former GOP contender Newt Gingrich after his run ended: $4.3 million
- Number of "Pants on Fire" ratings given to Republican Senate hopeful Josh Mandel of Ohio by PolitiFact: 6
- Number of GOP Senate candidates who oppose abortion in the case of rape: At least 12
- Early-voting days in Florida, 2012: 8
- Early-voting days in Florida, 2008: 14
- Hours some Florida voters waited to vote early in 2012: 7
- Of 21 countries surveyed by BBC World, the number that would elect Romney if voting in the 2012 presidential contest: 1 (Pakistan)
- Number of political ads run to support or oppose either presidential candidate since June 1: 1,015,615 (a 39.1 percent increase from the same period in 2008)
- Number of female bikers spoon-hugged by Vice President Joe Biden: 1
- Number of likes garnered by the "Binders Full of Women" Facebook page within an hour of its creation: 80,000
- Newspaper endorsements for Romney, among largest 100 U.S. papers: 35
- Newspaper endorsements for Obama: 41
- Major tasks Romney has slated for "day one" of his presidency: 15
- Number of "tossup" states according to HuffPost Pollster: 5
- Number of Sandy victims still without power on Election Day: 973,759