A side by side social media comparison of social mentions at the DNC and RNC conventions respectively,

1. DNC beats the RNC in social chatter
At it’s peak volume the Democratic convention’s official hashtag #DNC2012, drew more than
60,000 posts on Twitter on Thursday September 6th – the same day as the President’s speech.
Likewise the peak volume for the Republican convention’s official hashtag #RNC2012 also peaked
on the date of Mitt Romney’s speech but with just 19,000 mentions. An alternate hashtag for the
Republicans, #GOP2012, took some volume at the expense of the official hashtag, while the
alternate hashtag for the Democrats, #DEM2012, drew volume early in the conference but faded
by the time their nominee spoke.

2. Convention word clouds
Each word represented in this word cloud represents the volume – the larger the word, the more
social posts that mention that word. It literally tells us what people were saying the most during
the conventions. The size of each parties hashtag in these graphics indicates both parties were
active on social media during their political rival’s convention.
Democratic Convention Republican Convention

3. Reporters active on social media
These charts indicate which reporters were active, and had some degree of influence, on social
media during the conventions. Tony Phyrillas, of the Pottstown, Pa.-based newspaper, The
Mercury, is a stand out because he appears to have been equally active on social media during
both conventions.
Democratic Convention Republican Convention

4. Influential tweeters during the conventions
Among the most influential tweeters on social media during the convention – Donald Trump was
active during both conventions, as was the President himself. The Huffington Post tweeted on-
topic more than 40 times during the Democratic convention and about half that number during
the Republican convention.
Democratic Convention Republican Convention

5. Campaign issues on social media
The following charts indicate the most discussed campaign issues during both conventions. The
top issue during the Democratic convention was “economy” while the top issue during the
Republican conventions was “taxes.”
Republican Convention
Democratic Convention

6. Current state of the social media race
On the tail end of the conventions, both teams are still virtually tied in terms of mentions of social
media. Team Obama has seen a slight bounce in the polls on the heels of the convention, but the
race is clearly still neck-in-neck.

7. Enjoy this? Here’s more:
Continually updated on the Vocus blog:
o 9/4: #Election2012: A Tight Social Media Race as DNC Convention Begins
o 8/29: #Election2012: Taxes Are The Number One Issue, Says Social Media
o 8/27: #Election2012: Is Romney Absorbing Ryan’s Social Media Buzz?
o 8/21: #Election2012: Which Candidate Has More Social Media Influence?
o 8/20: #Election2012 Social Race: Can Social Media Predict the Election?
o 9/6: Guest post : How Much Will Social Media Really Affect the U.S. Election?