Introducing the 2012 Presidential Election

Abstract

The 2012 election was extraordinary in several ways even though the balance of power remained unchanged. President Barack Obama faced unprecedented economic woes despite having a remarkably active first term. The Republican field experienced the meteoric rise of multiple long-shot candidates before aligning behind an unlikely front-runner, Mitt Romney. It was a particularly long and publicized primary process modeled in part after the bruising 2008 Democratic primary that was believed to strengthen the political chops of the Democratic savior that emerged and his potential successor in 2016. The 2012 primary did not have the same effect for Republicans. Romney emerged weakened by internal and external attacks, not to mention, “the Mormon thing” as Romney called it.