Does Google search interest correlate with political support?
Below are a couple of graphics we have built with the generous assistance of the folks at Google News to try to test this question in the races pitting Gov. Charlie Backer against Democrat Jay Gonzalez and Sen. Elizabeth Warren against GOP challenger Geoff Diehl.
In both cases, the charts track relative search intensity on Google for each candidate every day in each Massachusetts county. The values Google have provided are comparative; so for example reading the top line of the Baker/Gonzalez chart shows that in Barnstable County (Cape Cod), people have consistently been searching for Baker on Google more than they have been searching for Gonzalez.
In fact, there are only a few times/places since September where search interest for Gonzalez has matched or surpassed search interest for Baker. For instance, Gonzalez matched Baker in Franklin County (the northwest portion of the state) on October 13, and surpassed him in Dukes County (Martha's Vineyard) on Oct. 21.
By all accounts, nether of these races is likely to be competitive on Tuesday; the Google search trend traffic isn't either.
Baker/Gonzalez by County
The chart below offers the same analysis of the race between Warren and Diehl, and again, it is pretty one-sided. Warren has regularly generated more search interest than Diehl across Massachusetts counties, though in Franklin County and Dukes County, Diehl has a few days of search interest that is comparable to Warren's.
Warren/Diehl by County
