47 percent

"47 percent" is a pejorative phrase from a 2012 U.S. presidential campaign speech made by Republican candidate Mitt Romney on May 17, 2012, at a private fundraiser. In the speech, Romney talked disparagingly about the "47 percent" of the population who are "with [Barack Obama], who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims." A video of the speech, covertly recorded by a bartender at the event, was released by Mother Jones a month before the election. The speech's publication is regarded as having helped Obama, the Democratic incumbent, win a second term in office.