TOW # 27 (visual image)

President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were the two final candidates of the 2012 presidential election. In this political cartoon the artist uses the well-known game, tic-tac-toe, and simple imagery to represent a popular opinion among voters that the election was “fixed” so that Obama had to win.

In the game Tic-Tac-Toe there is a very simple way to ensure a victory, all you have to do is get three corners. In this political cartoon the artist uses the faces of both Obama and Romney as the X’s and O’s of the game board, and Obama has three corners. Now no matter where Romney goes next, Obama has another opportunity to win. This use of aphorism is a commentary of the nature of the election. No matter which stance Romney had or issue he was running on Obama always had the advantage. At the time, democrats controlled congress, Obama was a sitting president, and he had the minorities. Although the election boxes were not stuffed and votes were not erased, the election, from a public relations and logistical standpoint, was fixed so that Obama would come up on top. The simplicity of the cartoon also helps make the artist’s ideas clear to their audience. 

            I believe the artist achieves their purpose of showing the nature of the 2012 presidential election. Through the use of clear drawings and a well-known game he or she is able to show the true competition between Obama and Romney, one that was not a competition at all.