The most heated Republican presidential debate of the 2016 election has a clear winner, according to real-time Internet metrics.
Donald Trump dominated the online conversation Saturday night, raking in the most Twitter followers, generating the most Google searches, and sparking the most talked-about moments of the CBS News debate.
While other candidates on the stage, including Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), had spikes in their search traffic, Trump managed to overwhelm his competition in all 50 states.
Replay the #GOPdebate in #SouthCarolina on @google search#datavizhttps://t.co/98uCSw33bG pic.twitter.com/rTRAMaCYT5
— GoogleTrends (@GoogleTrends) February 14, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump top searched candidate across US on @Google at the #GOPDebate https://t.co/fQux6GBwqX pic.twitter.com/y8bpCRIdjx
— GoogleTrends (@GoogleTrends) February 14, 2016
Of course, Trump had an advantage, given that he was the most searched candidate before the debate began, too.
.@realDonaldTrump is top searched #GOPdebate candidate across the US right now on @googlehttps://t.co/fQux6GBwqX pic.twitter.com/VhjOoG45kw
— GoogleTrends (@GoogleTrends) February 14, 2016
Trump made it a point to go after former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush all night long, but his biggest moment—in fact, according to Twitter data, the biggest moment—came when he called out Jeb’s brother, former President George W. Bush, for not stopping the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Top Tweeted moment for #GOPDebate: Trump criticizes Bush Administration including security issues and 9/11. https://t.co/QedTthhPou
— Government (@Gov) February 14, 2016
The second and third most-tweeted moments also belonged to Trump, who took jabs at Cruz and (of course) Jeb Bush.
2nd most-Tweeted moment for #GOPDebate: Trump and Cruz argue over conservative credentials. pic.twitter.com/N8Ob9iT3bu
— Government (@Gov) February 14, 2016
3rd most-Tweeted moment for #GOPDebate: Trump on immigration, "The weakest person by far is Jeb Bush." https://t.co/xvBYIyKv1M
— Government (@Gov) February 14, 2016
The interest in Trump’s barrage of on-stage attacks may include a hefty portion of criticism and mockery from all political stripes, but it’s also helped Trump gain a whole new batch of followers.
Ranked follower growth for all candidates in #GOPDebate:
— Government (@Gov) February 14, 2016
1. @RealDonaldTrump
2. @MarcoRubio
3. @JohnKasich
4. @HillaryClinton
5. @TedCruz
Final share of Twitter conversation around #GOPDebate candidates. pic.twitter.com/77mzNCl6uV
— Government (@Gov) February 14, 2016
Saturday night’s debate, held in Greenville, South Carolina, comes just seven days before voters in that state head to the polls for the South Carolina Republican primary on Feb. 20.
Trump, who was booed by the debate audience for his attacks throughout the event, currently holds an 18.5 point lead over his nearest rival.
Screenshot via CBS News