• by Maria Bailey , Columnist, October 3, 2012

Historians attribute Bill Clinton’s successful run for the White House to “soccer moms.” Today, these mothers of influence can be found online on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. With mothers numbering over 82 million in the U.S., it’s no surprise that both Ann Romney and Michelle Obama made an effort to appeal to voting mothers during their national convention speeches. We recently polled over 1,000 mom influencers about their thoughts on the election, candidates and issues.  

Social Media Moms

How often do moms discuss the election, candidates or political issues with other moms? More importantly, where and how are the conversations taking place? While traditional media remain a top choice as a source of information, Facebook and social media are the top choices for discussing politics and sharing opinions. The survey responses point to the increasing influence of social media on moms who love to communicate with each other.

• Moms mainly communicate via Facebook; an overwhelming 56% of moms ranked Facebook as the top choice, followed by blogs at 30% and Twitter at 25%.
   
• Forty-six percent of moms say they talk about politics on the phone, with another 44% of moms saying they talk politics at offline events, such as children’s birthday parties, sporting events and other group activities.
   
• Almost 41% of moms “Like” a candidate or political organization on Facebook.
  
  
• Most moms talk politics with their peers on a weekly basis (41%).
  
  
• To educate themselves on candidates and issues, moms like television over other media outlets. Over 74% of moms surveyed rely on television, followed by newspapers (66%) and online forums/websites (56%) as sources of information.
  
  
• More than 61% of moms responded yes when asked if they encourage another person to get involved or educate themselves on the issues of the November election

Issues Important to Moms

Whether on Facebook or on the playground, Moms have specific issues that resonate with them when deciding who gets their votes. Not surprisingly, the majority of moms – 53% - responded that once they have children, they start paying more attention to issues that affect their families.

• Ranking issues that resonate with moms, education and health care tie for the top spot. Almost 45% of moms rank each as their most important issue
  
  
• Jobs rank a close second with 43% with women’s health issues at 37%
  
  
• The choice of running mate ranks higher in importance (4 out of 5) than the choice of First Lady (3 out of 5)
  
  
• Close to 58% of moms appreciated the references that Ann Romney and Michelle Obama made to their roles as mothers during their convention speeches 

For Better or Worse

What do Moms think about current politics, their personal situation and the future? 

• In the current administration, moms ranked gay marriage and health care as the top areas of improvement.
   
• A majority of survey respondents ranked “jobs” as the area needing the most improvement during the next administration.
  
  
• When asked about the last four years, 19% of moms responded that they are faring better, 37% about the same and 44% worse for their families. 

With an almost even split of Democrat and Republican moms (31% each), 20% Independent and 18% swing voters who vote across party lines, most moms already know their November choice. Over 88% of moms surveyed intend to vote in the election, with 74% indicating that they have decided who will receive their vote. 

And, finally, on the lighter side of the issues, the attire of Michelle Obama and Ann Romney became the much-talked-about topic after the convention speeches. Just over 52% of moms would choose to wear Obama’s dress and 48% would wear Romney’s dress. Almost 37% of moms relate more to Michelle Obama, while 22% relate to Ann Romney. 

No one can accurately predict the outcome of November’s election however one thing is for sure, U.S. moms will play a major part in who wins the campaign.