Sunday, January 1, 2012

Mitt Romney Finally Comes Off the Ropes

While there was no debate last night, the start of the new year is a good marker in our ongoing count of Facebook support for the Republican Presidential candidates. Mitt Romney finally won a round, edging out Ron Paul to add more Facebook supporters in the last 2 weeks of 2011 than any other Republican candidate.

CandidateFri 12/16 NoonSun 1/1 NoonPickup
Mitt Romney1,220,6431,260,52139,878
Ron Paul635,626672,80337,177
Newt Gingrich216,905223,6706,765
Rick Santorum36,48441,0694,585
Rick Perry176,829179,9693,140
Jon Huntsman28,96630,6351,669
Gary Johnson145,446146,7091,263
Michele Bachmann460,043460,288245

Gary Johnson is a scratch, having quit the Republican Party to join the Libertarian Party this past Wednesday.

This race is fast coming down to a two-man contest between Mitt Romney and Ron Paul. Indeed, looking at the past debate rounds, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are the only candidates who consistently finished in the money.

Event Round Period First Place Second Place Third Place
Reagan Library 9/7 to 9/8 Ron Paul Rick Perry Mitt Romney
Tampa 9/8 to 9/13 Ron Paul Rick Perry Mitt Romney
Orlando 9/13 to 9/23 Ron Paul Mitt Romney Rick Perry
Dartmouth 9/23 to 10/12 Herman Cain Ron Paul Mitt Romney
Las Vegas 10/12 to 10/19 Herman Cain Ron Paul Mitt Romney
Michgan 10/19 to 11/10 Herman Cain Mitt Romney Ron Paul
South Carolina 11/10 to 11/13 Herman Cain Mitt Romney Ron Paul
DC Neocon 11/13 to 11/23 Herman Cain Newt Gingrich Mitt Romney
Huck-a-bee 11/23 to 12/4 Newt Gingrich Mitt Romney Ron Paul
Des Moines 12/4 to 12/11 Ron Paul Newt Gingrich Mitt Romney
Sioux City 12/11 to 12/16 Ron Paul Mitt Romney Newt Gingrich
New Year's Day 12/16 to 1/1 Mitt Romney Ron Paul Newt Gingrich

Looking at Rick Perry and especially Herman Cain, one can only wonder what might have been. For Newt Gingrich, it has been too little too late as he is still 87,639 supporters short of crossing the Biden Line (Joe Biden currently has 311,309 supporters on Facebook).

Mitt Romney has been playing the rope-a-dope, taking punches from a protected stance as his opponents one-by-one tire themselves out. Ron Paul will go the distance, so Romney will have to beat him at the ballot box.

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