When did you first hear of....

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Barack Obama: I first heard of him after the 2004 DNC, when my grandmother accurately predicted he would be the next president. I didn’t think of him again until 2007.

Hillary Clinton: I can’t recall exactly when, but I remember being aware of her and her presidential ambitions as early as 2003.

Joe Biden: The first Democratic 2008 debate. I also heard of Chris Dodd, John Edwards, Bill Richardson, and Kucinich. My grandpa (who identified as a revolutionary socialist and was a militant atheist) got into a debate that resulted in my mom getting on him for swearing, to which he yelled “God damnit, he talks like he’s 35 f[INKS]ing years old!” Oh, the memories….

George W. Bush: Sometime after he was elected in 2000. I remember my parents voting for him that year, but my first visual memory of him was in the weeks following 9/11.

Dick Cheney: My grandmother was babysitting me on the night of “Mission Accomplished.” I remember his arrival shortly before Bush flew in more distinctly. I do remember discussing with my grandma how a plane can land on a ship.

Mitt Romney: I first heard his name on the Today Show the morning after he kicked off his first campaign in 2007.

John McCain: Saw him in the 2008 debates, and he was my third favorite candidate throughout the cycle.

Rudy Giuliani: 9/11. He was on TV a lot before that, but I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t know he was running for President until my grandma and her friends picked me up from school to see him, where I shook his hand.

Ron Paul: I first discovered him in the 2008 debates and hated him with a passion at the time for being a “liberal.”

Sarah Palin: I knew McCain was announcing his VP choice that afternoon, but I didn’t find out until my mom picked me up from school. I was in sixth grade at the time, and thought that for some reason Kathleen Sebelius was a Republican and was hoping McCain would have picked her. When I heard about Palin that day, I kept thinking her name was "Sarah Plain" and called her that for weeks.

Michelle Bachmann: A rally in 2009 with Palin; I thought she was trying way too hard to be Palin 2.0, down to the way she dressed.

Newt Gingrich: My grandmother wanted him to run in 2008 and only described him as a “historian.” I didn’t know his full history until the 2010 midterms began to heat up, bringing his name back into the news.

Rick Santorum: I remember him being a frequent TV presence in 2005, but I didn’t really think of him again until 2010 when they began to talk him up for President.

Feel free to add your own names and memories to this rather dumb list .

[Indy Texas]

Barack Obama: Election Night 2004, mainly thinking about how unfortunate he was to have a last name that sounded so much like "Osama"

Hillary Clinton: Being a young child and having a general awareness that she was the First Lady

Joe Biden: the beginning of the 2008 Democratic primaries

George W. Bush: growing up in Texas and having a general awareness that he was the governor and that former President Bush was his father

Dick Cheney: when he was W's running mate

Mitt Romney: not long after the 2004 election when he was considered a potential 2008 candidate

John McCain: probably around the mid-2000s when I started following politics more closely

Rudy Giuliani: 9/11

Ron Paul: 2008 GOP primaries

Sarah Palin: saw on the news that she had become governor of Alaska during Election Night 2006; never heard another word about her or thought about her until McCain randomly made her his running mate

Michelle Bachmann: probably not long after Obama's inauguration, when the Tea Party started picking up steam and her outlandish statements began regularly surfacing on the Internet

Newt Gingrich: as a young child, hearing my parents/the news/newspapers/etc mention him, though I don't think I understood what he did or why he was trying to impeach the president

Rick Santorum: when he was defeated in spectacular fashion in 2006

[Wake Me Up When The Hard Border Ends]

Barack Obama: Early 2008 from my dad, indeed, I was an Obama supporter during this period /shock.

Hillary Clinton: 2008, possibly before.

Joe Biden: Middle of 2008, whenever he was picked as Obama's running mate.

George W. Bush: September of 2001, when my 5th grade class and I were learning about 9/11. Up until then, I thought Clinton was still President. Was a massive Bush fanboy when I was 13 too.

Dick Cheney: Not sure, I would have been around 12 or 13 (2003/2004)?

Mitt Romney: 2011, when the primary debates were getting underway for the 2012 primaries. Disliked him from the word go.

John McCain: Mid-2008, became a McCain supporter around September that year.

Rudy Giuliani: Not until 2010 at the earliest.

Ron Paul: Early 2009, through the Internet.

Sarah Palin: July or August of 2008.

Michelle Bachmann: Around 2010, like ChairmanSanchez, thought she was the new Palin.

Newt Gingrich: 2011 I think, same reason as Mitt Romney.

Rick Santorum: Same as Gingrich.

[ElectionsGuy]

I wasn't remotely interested in politics until 2012.

Obama - 2008
Clinton - 2008
Biden - 2008
Bush - 2006
Cheney - 2012
Romney - 2012
McCain - 2008
Giuliani - 2013
Paul - 2012
Palin - 2010
Bachmann - 2013
Gingrich - 2012
Santorum - 2012

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Obama - 2004
Clinton - 1991 or 1992
Biden - 2003
Bush - 1994
Cheney - 2000
Romney - 2002
McCain - 1999
Giuliani - 1993
Paul - 2007
Palin - 2006
Bachmann - 2000s
Gingrich - 1994
Santorum - 2000s

[dead0man]

Obama -2004 DNC
Hillary - 91 I guess
Biden - no clue
W - 99 I guess
Cheney - no clue
Mitt - 2000?
Rudy - whenever he became mayor of NYC
Paul - 2000?
Palin - same as everybody else
Bachman - same as above
Newt-94
Santorum - 2000s?

[Flake]

Barack Obama: 2008
Hillary Clinton: 2008
Joe Biden: 2008
George W. Bush 2005/Hurricane Katrina
Dick Cheney: 2007
Mitt Romney: 2008?
Rudy Giuliani: 2010?
Ron Paul: 2009?
Sarah Palin: 2008
Michele Bachmann: 2010
Newt Gingrich: 2011
Rick Santorum: 2011

[HagridOfTheDeep]

Barack Obama: [~2007] Facebook was just becoming a thing at my high school and I recall a built-in app that people were using to pledge support for Barack Obama, 'cuz everyone thought it would be cool to have a black president.

Hillary Clinton: [?] I must have know who she was throughout the Bush years at least, but I really can't recall when I first heard of her. I do remember first following her when I happened to catch a primary debate on CNN in the fall of 2007. That's also when I realized that this Obama guy really didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

Joe Biden: [2007] Learned of him in that same debate.

George W. Bush: [2000] I couldn't put a face to the name, but I remember talk around the schoolyard of "Bush for president." It was funny because he was named after a bush.

Dick Cheney: [~2004] I was in middle school during the 2004 election, and this is when the "Bush is an idiot" talk really started to spread (or, at least, it was the first time I noticed it). I think this is sort of when the idea of "Cheney really being in control" also caught my ear.

Mitt Romney: [2007] I had started following the election coverage because of Hillary, and I remember CNN going nuts over Romney's "Faith in America" speech. The snippets I heard of it convinced me that he was a pretty reasonable guy with his head on straight, so he became my "Republican choice," even though I was heavily rooting for the Democrats.

John McCain: [2007] Like the others above.

Rudy Giuliani: [2001] It's really a testament to how much he was on the news after 9/11 that Rudy Giuliani became a household name for a nine-year-old kid.

Ron Paul: [2007] Same deal. Debates and election coverage.

Sarah Palin: [2008] I had no idea who she was until McCain plucked her out of nowhere.

Michelle Bachmann: [~2010] I remember her as a Tea Party voice during the midterms. I was living in residence then for my first year of university, so I didn't have a TV, but CNN's Political Ticker website seemed to mention her a lot.

Newt Gingrich: [?] I think I knew of him before the 2012 election, but I have no idea when I first heard of him. Maybe his name came up when I was researching Hillary and Bill in 2008.

Rick Santorum: [2011] I've never followed statewide elections, and he was just the little so-con rube who had no shot against Romney. It really is amazing how is campaign picked up steam.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

I decided to do a search for when the NY Times first an an article. Romney seems to be the winner. (HUD secretary's son to marry)

Obama Feb 6 1990
Clinton Jul 3 1978
Biden Nov 5 1972
Cheney Aug 13 1972
Mitt Romney Mar 15 1969
Guilani June 24 1981
Ron Paul Apr 28 1976
Palin June 4 2003
Gingrich Oct 27 1976

[Phony Moderate]

Obama: Early 2008
Clinton: 2002, when she was the answer to a question on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Biden: When I bought President Forever in mid-2008
Bush: Invasion of Iraq
Cheney: See Biden
Romney: When a teacher of mine told us the story of his dog on his car roof (probably April-May 2008)
Giuliani: See Cheney
Paul: See Giuliani
Palin: August 2008
Gingrich: See Paul

[politicallefty]

Barack Obama: I can remember seeing his name on Democratic websites in early-to-mid 2004, mainly for fundraising purposes. I did think his name was very odd at first.

Hillary Clinton: I don't know. I grew up when she was First Lady, so sometime in the '90s.

Joe Biden: During the Iraq War debate in late 2002, I recall there being considerable debate over the Biden/Lugar Resolution. That's the first time I'd heard of and became aware of him.

George W. Bush: Sometime in early 2000. I initially thought he was his father. I didn't become a die-hard Gore supporter until the fall.

Dick Cheney: Sometime in 2000. I knew he was Bush's running mate and nothing more.

Mitt Romney: I knew he was the Governor of Massachusetts in 2006 and that he declined to run as he was facing near-certain defeat.

John McCain: I was aware of him running for the Republican nomination in 2000.

Rudy Giuliani: 9/11.

Ron Paul: I'm not sure. I knew of him before he ran for President in 2008, basically as someone who would cast odd votes in the House and be the only or among a very select few.

Sarah Palin: I knew she beat the incumbent Governor in a primary and won in 2006 and was an insanely popular Governor until becoming McCain's running mate.

Michelle Bachmann: Late 2006. I knew that MN-06 was a competitive seat that year and I remember seeing it featured on the news.

Newt Gingrich: I honestly have no idea.

Rick Santorum: Once again, I'm not really sure. I just remember that seat being considered the top Democratic pick-up for 2006 fairly early on.

[RogueBeaver]

Obama: early 2007. I started following US politics around this time.

Hillary Clinton: 2000. In connection with the Florida recount.

Joe Biden: 2006.

George W. Bush: 2000 Bush v. Gore. My first political memory.

Dick Cheney: 2000 See above.

Mitt Romney: 2007 Candidate for the GOP nomination, ex-guv. Remember his sons being prominent in early primaries.

John McCain: 2006 Always quoted when Iraq was in the news.

Rudy Giuliani: 9/11

Ron Paul: 2008. Insane guy saying insane things.

Sarah Palin: 2008. Halperin's The Page. Knew intuitively she'd be picked.

Michelle Bachmann: 2009. One of the crazies.

Newt Gingrich: No idea.

Rick Santorum: 2009.

[TDAS04]

Barack Obama:  When he was the Democratic nominee for US Senator in 2004.

Hillary Clinton:  Mid-1990s, when I learned she was Bill's wife.

Joe Biden:  After 9-11, I saw his interview on CNN (he was chair of the Foreign Relations Committee).

George W. Bush:  Sometime before he was a candidate for POTUS, I remember my dad telling me that George H. W. Bush's son was Governor of Texas.

Dick Cheney:  After he was picked as W's running mate (embarrassingly, I though Cheney was a nice guy; He seemed gentle and grandfatherly).

Mitt Romney:  When he was running for Governor of Massachusetts.

John McCain:  2000 Republican primaries.

Rudy Giuliani:  After 9-11.

Ron Paul: In 2003, I was looking at roll call votes online, and I noticed that a guy named Ron Paul was often the lone vote against a lot of things.

Sarah Palin:  During her primary challenge against Governor Frank Murkowski in 2006.

Michelle Bachmann:  When she was running for Congress in 2006.

Newt Gingrich:  When he was Speaker.

Rick Santorum:  When he made some anti-French comments in 2002 or 2003.

[RR1997]

Barack Obama:  2007

Hillary Clinton:  2007

Joe Biden:  2008

George W. Bush: 2003 or 2004

Dick Cheney:  2010

Mitt Romney:  2007

John McCain:  2007

Rudy Giuliani:  2007

Ron Paul: 2011

Sarah Palin:  2008

Michelle Bachmann:  2011

Newt Gingrich:  2011

Rick Santorum: 2011

[BaconBacon96]

Barack Obama: 2007, when he started campaigning for president.

Hillary Clinton: Can't remember, probably mid-2000's.

Joe Biden: 2008, when he was selected to be Obama's Veep.

George W. Bush: 2004 or 2005, to do with Hurricane Katrina and the Iraq War.

Dick Cheney: Probably around the same time.

Mitt Romney: 2010 or 2011, when he did an appearance on The View that I saw my mother watching. I didn't remember any of the 2008 GOP primary candidates except McCain at that point.

John McCain: 2008, remember seeing him as the Republican candidate and hearing that he was some kind of war hero.

Rudy Giuliani: Whenever I first read about 9/11.

Ron Paul: 2011, during his presidential campaign.

Sarah Palin: 2008, during the election.

Michelle Bachmann: 2011, I saw her on the news and instantly realised she was insane.

Newt Gingrich: 2011 again.

Rick Santorum: 2012, when he won the Iowa caucuses.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Also, feel free to add other names to the list, including international figures.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

To apply it to UK and international politics:

David Cameron: His election as Tory leader. My mum said she thought he sounded fake.

Ed Miliband: His passage of the Climate Change Act. I was always a greenie at heart; so it made me a major Miliband fanboy, before it was cool. (Assuming being an Ed Miliband fan will ever be cool)

Nick Clegg: Read an interview with him in the Independent, when he was elected as Lib Dem leader. Looking back a rather bland piece, but I flirted with Lib Demmery for a while.

Tony Blair: At six-years old, unwittingly entered a photo-op with him as he was doing some event in Central London connected with the 2001 election. I thought he was awesome.

Gordon Brown: An editorial in the Express lambasting him. (I used to be quite reactionary on certain issues because of that damn paper.

Ken Livingstone: The "concentration camp guide" scandal of 2005. My Labour-supporting parents were quite disappointed in him.

Kevin Rudd and John Howard: My cousin came over from Australia in 2006 or so and told me to watch an Australian satire programme called The Chaser's War on Everything. Though the exact political leanings of the two men eluded me, I found it hilarious.

[RogueBeaver]

David Cameron: 2006, in connection with Blair's long goodbye.

Ed Miliband: 2010 UK election.

Tony Blair: 2005, London bombings.

Gordon Brown: 2007.

Ken Livingstone: 2008.

Kevin Rudd and John Howard: 2007.


Some Canadian figures...

Jean Chretien: 2002, when he fired Martin.

Paul Martin: 2002. See above.

Stephen Harper: 2004.

Jack Layton: 2004

Gilles Duceppe: 2004.

Pierre Trudeau: 2005.

Justin Trudeau: 2006.

Bob Rae: 2006.

Stephane Dion: 2006.

Michael Ignatieff: 2006.

[BaconBacon96]

David Cameron: 2010, during the election campaign.

Ed Miliband: 2010, after he became Labour leader.

Tony Blair: Can't remember, 2004 probably.

Gordon Brown: 2007, when he became Prime Minister.

Ken Livingstone: 2012, read about him on Wikipedia.

Nick Clegg: 2010, when he became Deputy PM.

Boris Johnson: 2008, when he became Mayor of London.

Kevin Rudd: 2006, upon become Labor leader.

John Howard: A long time ago, early 2000's.

Julia Gillard: 2007, during the election that year.

Tony Abbott: Sometime before 2007, when he was a government minister.

Stephen Harper: 2011, during that Canadian election

Justin Trudeau: 2013, when Bob Rae resigned as Liberal leader.

Francois Hollande: 2012, when he won election as French President.

Nicolas Sarkozy: 2007

Angela Merkel: 2008 or 2009, during the economic crisis.

Vladimir Putin: 2006

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Barack Obama: 2004 during his primary campaign for Illinois Senate.

Hillary Clinton: Sometime during the Clinton presidency.

Joe Biden: early 2000s when I got more into electoral politics as he was a prominent Senator.

George W. Bush: sometime in the late 90s upon learning that the son of the first President Bush was now Texas Governor.

Dick Cheney: early in Bush's Presidency.

Mitt Romney: When he was elected Massachusetts Governor in 2002.

John McCain: 2000 primary election.

Rudy Giuliani: I remember hearing about the controversy over his mayorship in the 90s.

Ron Paul: 2003, during the lead up to the Iraq War.

Sarah Palin: In 2004 when she was mentioned as a possible primary challenger to Lisa Murkowski.

Michelle Bachmann: 2003 when she started her push for the anti-gay marriage amendment in the Minnesota legislature.

Newt Gingrich: Sometime when he was Speaker.

Rick Santorum: Either 2002 or 2003, although I didn't put much thought to him at first. It wasn't until he made that comment comparing homosexuality to polygamy and adultery that he became much of an issue.

So I beat everyone on Palin (that's what I get for lurking Free Republic at that time) and Bachmann (for obvious reasons)

[TNF]

Barack Obama - 2006

Hillary Clinton - 2006

Joe Biden - 2007

George W. Bush - 2000

Dick Cheney - 2001

Romney - 2007

McCain - 2007

Giuliani - 2001

Paul - 2007

Palin - 2008

Bachmann - 2008

Gingrich - 2007

Santorum - 2007? 2008?

David Cameron - 2008? 2009?

Ed Milliband - 2009

Nick Clegg - 2008? 2009?

Tony Blair - 2002

Gordon Brown - 2007

Ken Livingstone - 2008?

Kevin Rudd - 2007

John Howard - 2007

Jean Chretien - 2008?

Paul Martin - 2006

Stephen Harper - 2006

Jack Layton - 2008

Gilles Duceppe - 2008

Pierre Trudeau - 2008

Justin Trudeau - 2009? 2010?

Bob Rae - 2009? 2010?

Stephane Dione - 2008

Michael Ignatieff - 2008? 2009?

Francois Hollande - 2012

Nicolas Sarkozy - 2007

Angela Merkel - 2007? 2008?

Vladimir Putin - 2001

[Boris]

Obama - 2004
Clinton - Sometime in the 1990s
Biden - 2005?
Bush - 2000
Cheney - 2000
Romney - 2005
McCain - 2000
Giuliani - 2001
Paul - 2006?
Palin - 2006
Bachmann - 2006
Gingrich - 1998?
Santorum - 2005

[Blue3]

Obama - 2004
DNC speech, easy

Clinton - not sure, maybe around 1996?
Whenever I first learned what/who the First Lady is. Bill Clinton is my first memory as President

Biden - early 2000's
He didn't clearly stick out until 2006 with the partition plan for Iraq, but I know I must have heard of him before, since I started following politics after 9/11 (when I was in 7th grade)

Bush - 1999
I remember talk of him slightly before the election

Cheney - 2000
When he became the VP nominee

Romney - 2002/2003
when he became Governor of Massachusetts definitely, might have heard him mentioned during the Olympics

McCain - 2000?
the 2000 election... though maybe earlier, for his Vietnam story

Giuliani - 2001
9/22

Paul - 2006 or 2007
Slightly before he caught fire, but not too much before

Palin - 2007
Heard her mentioned as a potential running mate for Ron Paul, before the primaries officially started

Bachmann - 2008?
Whenever the news started paying attention to her craziness

Gingrich - 1998
Impeachment

Santorum - 2004?
When he was a leading social conservative

[Phony Moderate]

David Cameron: When he was elected Tory leader in 2005. I recall some talk of him being the 'underdog' and that Davis had been expected to win.

Ed Miliband: Probably first heard the name in 2008. Didn't see or hear him until 2009 at the earliest.

Tony Blair: When my dad and uncle were moaning about some chap by the name of Tony Blair...that was probably around 2001 or so.

Gordon Brown: When I asked a teacher of mine who would be the next Prime Minister. She replied "I hope it's Gordon Brown." That was probably 2002ish.

Ken Livingstone: 2007/2008 maybe?

Nick Clegg: 2008

Boris Johnson: 2008

Kevin Rudd: 2008

John Howard: I saw him paying tribute to Steve Irwin in 2006. Didn't learn his name until 2008 while reading Wikipedia.

Julia Gillard: When she ousted Rudd in 2010.

Tony Abbott: 2009

Stephen Harper: 2008

Justin Trudeau: 2011?

Francois Hollande: 2012

Nicolas Sarkozy: 2008, when some guy was impersonating him in a prank call to Sarah Palin.

Angela Merkel: 2009, when she was re-elected.

Vladimir Putin: 2008

[Oakvale]

ITT lying for no reason