For at least the last two election cycles, Republicans have suffered a presidential empathy gap. Exit polls from 2008 found that among voters who identified “cares about people” as the quality they found most important in a candidate, 74 percent voted for Barack Obama and just 24 percent for John McCain.

In 2012, Obama expanded that 50-point gap to 63 points. GOP nominee Mitt Romney trounced Obama among voters who valued a candidate who “shares my values,” is a “strong leader” and has “a vision for the future.” But Obama won the empathy vote 81-18 percent. For all of Romney’s strengths, he just couldn’t convince people that he cared about them.