The Social Media Race

One of the hallmarks of President Obama's 2008 campaign was the devotion he paid to his followers on social media. Without a doubt, the race would have been considerably closer without the enthusiasm and strength of his social community. However, according to a new blog post by Anthony Calabrese on PBS Media Shift, the tables may be turning. Across the country, Republican candidates have significantly more social reach than their (oftentimes incumbent) opponents. Take a look at his vizzes below.

Ross Perez

One of the hallmarks of President Obama's 2008 campaign was the devotion he paid to his followers on social media. Without a doubt, the race would have been considerably closer without the enthusiasm and strength of his social community. However, according to a new blog post by Anthony Calabrese on PBS Media Shift, the tables may be turning. Across the country, Republican candidates have significantly more social reach than their (oftentimes incumbent) opponents. Take a look at his vizzes below.

The first view outlines the monthly gains (in followers) of Senatorial candidates across the country. As it stands now, it looks like the Republicans have a commanding (social) lead. Some of Anthony's readers suggested that this could be because the challenging Republicans have more time to spend on social activities.

The second visualization shows the number of social media followers various parties have. The traditional parties seem to be very popular on Twitter, while the Coffee and Tea Parties seem to excel on Facebook.