Elections hang by a thinner thread than you think.

 

By now you probably know that Barack Obama's 2012 campaign for a second term "moneyballed" the election, employing a team of over 50 analytics experts.

 

You may also know that the huge volume of contentious and costly presidential campaign tactics – executed in the eleventh hour in pursuit of the world's most powerful job – ultimately served only to sway a thin slice of the electorate: swing voters within swing states.

 

But what most people don't realize is that presidential campaigns must focus even more narrowly than that, taking micro-targeting to a whole new level. The Obama campaign got this one right, breaking ground for election cycles to come by applying an advanced form of predictive analytics that pinpoints rare gems: truly persuadable voters.

 

This is the new microcosmic battleground.