I was only 10 during the 2012 US Election so I don’t remember much of it.
Today, I found myself in the depths of 2012 YouTube, and I found the absolute most bizarre videos of uninformed people passionately praising/trashing Romney and Obama.
So I’m curious what it was like to be an American at that time. If the election was chaotic, divisive, funny, scary, etc.
49 comments
I missed voting in the 2012 election; I just moved to a new state and didn’t have a chance to update my address at the time. It was the last boring Presidential election I remember. There were your birthers and Obama conspiracy nuts but it was extremely tame compared to the 2016 and 2020 elections.
The big issues were the war on terror and the recession.
It was not very notable
I remember a lot of people hating on Romney because he was a Mormon
Other than that it was pretty civi
Pretty boring. I miss those days.
I mean there it was nothing like the 2016 election. Obama did terrible in the debates but his cooperation with New Jersey Republicans (governor Chris Christie) after a hurricane hit the state I think won him the re-election because Christie praised Obama and people looked at that as his ability to work across party lines.
Never let a disaster go to waste Trump could of easily won in 2020 if he worked with Democrats during the covid pandemic.
I don’t remember it being very intense. Obama was a relatively popular president and had an incumbent advantage, so Romney was always somewhat of a long-shot. It kind of went as most people expected.
Of course it’s possible that it was more hotly contested than I remember, and it just seems less memorable in comparison because of how absurd the last several elections have been.
Mild.. I barely paid attention.. Once Obama got elected the first time, I didn’t really have much of a doubt about him being a two term president.
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Seriously, the elections looking like reality TV instead of an election is super new.. Trump’s whole thing is very unique.. The other elections pale in comparison as far as drama goes.
Relatively boring. You didn’t have the “is it happening?” moment of 2008 or the shit show of an election in 2016 and 2020. That said it wasn’t like everything was kumbaya either. Political polarization was already well established by 2012, so it was still toxic, just not 2016 toxic
According to Facebook I liked something called “Romneyshambles.”
It was the least memorable election of my adult life. 2000 and 2004 had their own special strangeness, 2008 ended up being in the shadow of a major recession, 2012 had a “things are back to normal” vibe to it. I particularly remember the GOP seemed to be stumbling around in the dark trying to find a viable candidate who actually stood a chance and the best they could do was Romney.
Damn. A lot people are forgetting all the stuff about people screaming their heads off that Obama was secretly a Muslim. Or that he was born in Africa.
In fact, Trump never did get around to producing that evidence on that point he said his investigators found. I wonder what the holdup is. 🤔
Mitt Romney came off as an out-of-touch plutocrat who oozed insincerity. The $10,000 bet he tried to make on stage was awkward as hell.
The most honest thing he said in the entire campaign is that he didn’t care about the bottom 47% of the electorate.
I joined the Air Force in 2002, got out in 06, and voted Republican up until 2012 but always socially liberal before that. I’d voted for McCain in 08 but by 2012 I was out. The tea party was taking over and they seemed like a bunch of irresponsible jerkoffs. I live in a solid red district in CA and warned my friends back east that these Republicans are not like what I’m used to and they ignored it all the way through voting for Trump
Not a lot of spice, but there was some.
Romney’s binder full of women or Barack HUSSEIN (certain types would emphasize the middle name) Obama being called a Muslim. Biden also said Romney would put black people back in chains. Like really, the milquetoast Romney is gonna do that?
Social media was around but not as widely used as in 2016 or now. Probably would have been spicier.
I miss President Obama.
I’ll never forget uber-rich Mitt Romney trying to convince people he came from humble beginnings by relating a story about being so poor when he and his wife first got married that they had to seek some of the stock his parents had given them as a wedding gift.
Romney was doing pretty well until someone (probably catering staff) at a GOP fundraiser video taped him saying honest things about how they view poor people. Believe it or not, that was enough to torpedo his campaign. I remember election night being tense (at the time, little did I know how awful it could be) and I cried with relief when Obama won.
I was mocking GOP people who were doing the opposite, literally hysterical over the fact “the antichrist” had won again.
This election triggered the Tea Party’s rise (and Trump’s). It was the last normal presidential election season we will ever have, I think.
Pretty strange to think that “binders full of women” was once a major gaffe
I was 10 / 11 in ’08 when Obama was first elected, and I remember that *very* clearly. It was exciting … or at least it was to me 😂 My friend and I celebrated in the streets when Obama won, lol
By contrast, I honestly don’t remember much at all about the 2012 election. I remember that politics were becoming more polarizing. I remember that I was rapidly losing an interest in debating politics (because it was beginning to feel like I was debating whether or not people deserved to have rights, rather than actual politics).
Other than that, it’s all fuzzy.
It was polarizing and dramatic for pre-Trump standards but nowadays it looks like extremely boring and routine, among the highlights:
– Ron Paul had a huge internet following that didn’t really translate into votes, while Rick Santorum captured the social conservative base of the GOP, but Romney had an easy path to victory;
– In the general, Romney was accused of trying to “put black people back in chains” and of being too radical (he moved to the right during the primary to appeal to the base), which is ironic considering that now he is deemed a moderate;
– Romney advocated for a more hawkish foreign policy on the Middle East, China and Russia weren’t as big of a deal (which is why Obama mocked Romney for advocating for a stronger policy during a debate);
– Saving/destroying Obamacare was a huge issue;
– The Tea Party was a big thing, which was a collection of extreme fiscal and social conservatives (unlike the MAGA movement four years later that was much more moderate on fiscal and economic issues) – Paul Ryan selection as VP was seen as a nod to them, which, again, is ironic considering that nowadays he is seen as the embodiment of establishment GOP;
– The Democratic Party was in terrible shape, after four years of huge losses at the state and congressional levels (if you’re interested in this era of American politics, you’ll find the 2010 midterms much more interesting than 2012), so while Obama ended winning with relative ease, when the campaigns started many didn’t believe he would pull-it-off;
– Romney was seen as the candidate of the rich and the elite while Obama was for the poor – and not just minorities, unlike in the next two elections in which the partisan stereotypes flipped, as crazy as it might sound to Gen Z, Obama had a huge appeal among white working class voters in the Midwest (the famous Obama-Trump voters);
– Mainstream Democrats were starting to flip on gay marriage into supporting it (the mainstream position was for civil unions; and only the hard-left wing supported marriage equality), and absolutely no one talked about trans issues outside of Tumblr and I’m guessing academia, Republicans were not just against gay marriage but most still supported a constitutional amendment prohibiting states from legalizing it;
– The internet wasn’t as big, so the people talking about the election were mostly young and politically-engaged people, so while there was as much hyperbole and as many terrible opinions as always, there weren’t as many literal completely made up facts nor actual propaganda as you can find now.
It isn’t focused specifically on the 2012 election, but I recommend Vice’s “A House Divided” documentary if you want to get a feel of how politics were during the Obama era, I find it pretty fair and unbiased. The Newsroom will also give you a decent insight, though it’s obviously extremely biased so do have that in mind when you watch it.
It was a fiercely contested election. Both camps seemed like they had a solid chance at winning, Romney himself managed to garner lots of support within traditional red country and in the mainstream. He was like able and charismatic, and he did a good job during the debates. Obama however, was just too popular and he sold his platform as one of ensuring that his administration was able to finish the job.
During the election, it felt every bit as divisive as the others, and it’s only in hindsight that it becomes clear that that was the last “normal” election cycle. Compared to modern politics, it was civil. The people running behaved like adults and there was a level of respectability that wasn’t violated by either camp.
It was an example of American democracy working as it should.
The biggest scandal was that someone clandestinely taped Romney saying at some closed door fundraiser dinner to a bunch of rich people that 40% of people don’t even pay income taxes, so they “don’t matter”, or something along those lines. Which wasn’t untrue, it just made him seem incredibly dismissive and out-of-touch.
It seems so quaint that that was what had people up in arms. 2016 and 2020 showed us just how bad it can get.
It was a whole lot of “if you don’t support Obama then you’re racist” mentality of some on the left. The GOP ran a clean, kind guy Mitt Romney and he got smeared and drug through the mud. This is a big precursor to why Trump won the nomination. The GOP had run 2 kind moderates and lost both times… so the GOP voters basically said screw it we’ll get the most brash candidate we can find.
Also, there was controversy as African American Herman Cain was leading the primaries, but the media smeared him with phony sexual harassment allegations with no evidence so he dropped out of the race. In my opinion, the left and media were scared to have two black men running against each other for president. It would have ruined the narrative that if you don’t like Obama then you’re racist and could have opened more black vote for the GOP.
The key thing I remember that was relevant later was Karl Rove’s refusal to accept that Obama won, as if he had insider information that it should be impossible for a democrat to win. https://youtu.be/Y2HC1W2BR-Q
It wasnt as nuts as its been since 2016 and 2020. Where crazy has taken over politics and media. Politics now just feels like two cults are arguing over which batch of koolaid will get you to heaven or hell faster.
I remember Paul Ryan debating Biden being pretty entertaining because Biden made him look like a little pipsqueak
Well,everyone thought it was the end of the world, just like now.
Paul Ryan got mocked online for a weird photo shoot that looked like an audition reel for Saved By The Bell
I was also 10 back in 2012 and I remember it didn’t seem like everyone was excited like back in 2008. Of course all I remember in 2008 was vaguely seeing Obama on a TV screen and my parents being very happy.
I’ll never forget my democrat friends carrying on about Obama “dunking” on Romney for warning about Russia, saying the 80s called and wanted their foreign policy back. What a fuck up. Could not have been more wrong about that.
As far as what it was like, I was in college and idpol was really getting big. Not as “exciting” as subsequent elections by any means though.
It’s when social media became a major factor in election campaigns.
My parents were so Romney crazy that they made Romney bracelets with hearts on them and encouraged us kids to wear them at school. Every kid wants their parent to be proud, so we did. My parents also made us watch all of his speeches. I cringe at the memories.
In hindsight I feel like deep down we knew Obama would win again, as he should. But in reality I was still nervous that night. I remember coming back from a concert where obviously I had been completely unplugged and smartphones had just barely become a thing for the average person, and as soon as I walked in my friend told me Obama won by a landslide, and just feeling the most relief ever. Believe it or not, even as “recently” as 2012, it wasn’t a situation where you’d just see the notification he won while you were out at a concert. I had to get back home and be told by someone who was watching the news while I was gone.
At the time, like every election when you’re in the thick of it, it felt like The Most Important Election of Our Lifetime. In retrospect it was pretty inconsequential. But of course exaggerating the faults of your opponent to whip up your voters is pretty standard stuff.
Also in retrospect I wonder if a Romney win would have prevented Trump. If so it would have been better for the country for Romney to win, and I say that as a partisan Democrat.
It was the last election where my husband and I voted differently.
He used to be a swing voter.
Nowadays we vote the same, because he’s become completely turned off by the GOP.
It was just a formality. We all knew Obama was going to win again.
Still waiting to see Romney’s binder of women.
“binders full of women” and his “47 percent” comments at a fundraising dinner generating controversy
The only standout thing I can think of that came out of the election was Ted Nugent claiming that “I will be either dead or in jail” if Obama wins reelection. That was pretty funny.
This clip is what I will always remember from that election:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=e7PvoI6gvQs
I was 12 and was more focused on reading fantasy books and watching Minecraft YouTubers, but I distinctly remember Mitt Romney Style being a big thing on the internet that year. Also “Thanks Obama” memes.
The only election in my life that I didn’t particularly care who won.
It was really funny in that conservatives were so certain Obama would be a one-term president. When he won, you’d have thought it was the end of the world for them.
Absolutely nothing special about it. Obama was getting reelected. No one really questioned that.
Pretty uneventful. There were a couple times when Obama looked a little vulnerable (like after the first debate), but he still managed to maintain his lead and win relatively comfortably
Like a lot of people have said, not very notable. The 2008 election tho…. That was some wild shit.
I voted for Obama in 2012, just like I did in 2008, but I remember thinking that a Romney win wouldn’t be the end of the world. He was obviously accomplished and smart. I remember him being in a precarious position because he implemented a successful model for health care reform as governor of Massachusetts, one that the Affordable Care Act was largely based on. Of course, the ACA (aka “Obamacare”) was very unpopular with Republican voters, so he had to balance touting his successful record with trashing the thing it spawned. Not an easy task.
That plus running against an incumbent plus weird things he said/did (like “binders full of women” and the whole weird “[dog on the hood of the car](https://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2012/02/15/146929766/why-romneys-shaggy-dog-story-wont-die)” story) is probably what sunk him. You could also tell that hardliner conservatives weren’t fully behind him in the way that they ended up being when Trump won the nomination in 2016.
Mitt Romney was the most competent person to run for president in modern history, and part of why he lost was due to “gaffes” which weren’t really gaffes, like the “binder full of women” or saying that nearly half of the country doesn’t pay income tax. Things were more civil back then, but the Obama campaign machine was particularly snide and ahead of their time with memes etc
Binders of women.
> I was only 10 during the 2012 US Election
Ya goddamn whipper snapper, get off my lawn ‘fore I turn the hose on ya!