9 takeaways from the 2012 election

There was more to this presidential election than just candidate promises. Billionaires put gobs of money behind their choice, which swamped any available outlet with advertising and fueled simultaneous campaigns on the Web and battleground states. And no one was paying more attention to what the candidates said during the campaign than the fact-checkers, though, both campaigns used their own narratives when it suited them. Also not seen before in a presidential race was President Obama urging the public to not just vote for him, but to do so early. The Romney camp criticized the effort by saying Obama was “cannibalizing” his Election Day share of the vote. And finally, Bill Clinton, who proved how much he loves campaigning—this time on behalf of Obama—and how his durability on the national stage will never decline.