By Joseph Crane
An examination of the astrology of this Presidential campaign, using many difficult predictive techniques, is a complicated enterprise. Here are some of the things I have surmised from my investigation.
Obama and Romney do not like each other or even respect each other; in fact they drive each other a bit crazy. There’s also sufficient Mars intruding on the first debate that it may be a rhetorical Armageddon. Expect an October surprise of some kind, one that will make Obama look bad, although his campaign will probably survive intact. Romney may wilt sometime before the end of the campaign, a victim of physical stress or exhaustion.
Election Day may be filled with confusion and rancor, but Obama will likely carry the Electoral College (but possibly not the overall popular vote). Both men will go through a period of depression after the election, not just the loser. If Romney loses the election, he will not be cast into the political wilderness by an ungrateful party but will retain some significance on the political scene. This latter possibility defies “conventional wisdom”, especially in the case of Mitt Romney and the Republican’s high expectations from a candidate they’ve been ambivalent about, but here you have it.
All this is based on bringing together information from various predictive indicators that astrologers use. Because astrology is a symbolic system, the specific situations that manifest these indications are fluid and may differ somewhat from what I have written above. I look forward to seeing how things actually transpire within the next few months and what light they shed on various predictive indicators that I cite here. When the election is settled in November (we fervently hope) it will be interesting to re-visit these predictions.
Below is an application of many astrological techniques to the candidates and to this campaign season and will show how I came to my conclusions.
Synastry between Obama and Romney
Both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are intelligent, ambitious, resourceful, and tough, and neither is a good mixer with “ordinary” people. An astrological natal analysis confirms all this for both men. I will add to it that they genuinely dislike each other and are natural adversaries. This is confirmed by their astrological synastry.
Most noticeably, Romney’s Saturn in Leo is only 4’ from an exact conjunction with Obama’s Mercury in Leo. This will become especially important during the debate season, when in their interactions with each other Romney may come across as rigid or oppressive and Obama may come across as tongue-tied, or at least less than his greatly articulate self.
Romney’s Pluto in Leo is also close to Obama’s Sun in Leo, making Romney quite threatening to Obama, which may offer the latter enough of a scare to lure him into shrill rhetorical combat.
On the other hand, Obama’s Mars in Virgo opposes Romney’s Sun in Pisces: this also can make Obama a threat to Romney. Although politicians often will speak of grand visions and their contrasts, it may also seem that their conflicts relive the candidates’ respective concerns for their own self-esteem and self-importance.
All this illustrates that for these two people the political will become the intensely personal. The debates should be interesting, perhaps in a Chinese curse kind of way.
A Mercury Retrograde Election
The last time there was a Mercury station on the US Election Day it was the year 2000, a year made famous by a disputed election was settled (very controversially) by the U.S. Supreme Court. Some of us remember how enjoyable that experience was.
On this Election Day this time around, Nov. 6, Mercury stations at 4o. Things could become confusing, topsy-turvy, or just plain nonfunctional. There are some situational possibilities. One is that Romney would get the popular vote, Obama the electoral vote, and Obama could be the winner under bitter circumstances – as in 2000. As in that year the electoral vote may be disputed due to some very close tallies in key states. Additionally, many states have new voter identification rules, ostensibly to reduce voter fraud. It’s likely that the result will be to discourage many people who are otherwise eligible from voting, and may turn away many people from the polls. This could lead to push-back by those who feel disenfranchised by these new requirements.
We quickly see that stationing Mercury is close to an opposition to the Ascendant, and at 5 Gemini is governed by Mercury! This relates to a time being one of a collaboration or contest, and we all know which one it’s going to be. Being stationary, however, Mercury’s symbolism points to things being powerful but slow, maybe stuck.
At this time it is close to a Third Quarter Moon from the Moon at 14 Leo to the Sun at 14 Scorpio. This only increases the potency of this chart. It does relate to Obama’s chart – the Moon in Leo would transit Obama’s Sun a few hours before. This does not indicate that Obama would be having a good day, but it could be a positive development for him.
Now things get even more interesting: the Ascendant of this chart is conjunct Obama’s Moon by 2° degrees and Romney’s by 4°, so that stationing Mercury is opposing Obama’s Moon and Romney’s Ascendant!
Stationing Mercury is opposing Obama’s Moon and shows that Mercury has gone into into Romney’s 7th house (by whole sign or quadrant houses), the place of partner and adversaries. This seems to favor Obama who is Romney’s adversary.
Obama – natal and transits
Obama has Sun in Leo in the more relational 7th house and the Moon in Gemini is applying to the Sun. Neither placement makes him extroverted, but instead they indicate a heroic attitude toward oneself (Sun in Leo), a cerebral (“cool”) emotional nature (Moon in Gemini,) and that they work well with each other (applying sextile). For its cerebral nature, mutable Moon in Gemini also gives some emotional or instinctual flexibility, more than would Romney’s in Scorpio. One should not be fooled by Obama’s sunny Sun in Leo or his urbane Moon in Gemini – Obama’s chart has a lot of hidden turbulence.
Jupiter, the planet of social integration and personal high-mindedness, is in his First – using whole sign houses – and opposes Mercury. Here we get Obama’s oratorical gifts, his ability to articulate large principles in grand style. Both Jupiter and Mercury are in fixed signs, and Obama is reluctant to change his mind on the larger ideas or his ways of articulating them. Jupiter becomes even more important because it’s the ruler of Obama’s Lot of Spirit in Sagittarius. Jupiter helps us understand Obama’s sense of his own mission that he insists is much larger than himself; whether this is naïve or grandiose, I leave to the reader.
Mercury is oriental to the Sun although within the Sun’s beams and is moving at a fast clip, at 2° daily. This indicates an energetic mind and a way with words. We have seen his ability to modulate his language to a fine degree, depending on his audience. Obama’s adversaries might be cheered by noting that Obama’s natal Mercury is moving toward a square to Neptune, indicating deceptiveness and that there is less there intellectually than meets the eye. (When we look at Paul Ryan’s chart next month, Obama’s adversaries will be less pleased.) Mercury, within the beams of and applying to a dignified Sun, may indicate a tendency toward self-serving rhetoric – or somebody really good at writing and talking about himself.
The ruler of Obama’s Ascendant in Aquarius is Saturn in Capricorn in the 12th place. In this hidden place for a lord of an Ascendant we encounter Obama the inscrutable, enigmatic, and even a sacrificial victim. Saturn is in its “joy” in the 12th but is also out of sect: this can give, at its best, a kind of grim determination. (We must note that during the summer Saturn in Libra has been transiting by square Obama’s natal Saturn in Capricorn. We should also note that transiting Saturn has been in Obama’s 12th place for the past two and a half years.) It’s been a difficult time for him.
Saturn also comes into play when we look at Obama’s Lot of Fortune in Aries governed by Mars, for Saturn is in the 10th place from the Lot and is positioned as a contributing factor to his success.
Mars in the 8th in Virgo is not in a greatly visible place and this is likely fortunate for somebody who cannot come across as an “angry black man.” Mars also contributes to Saturn’s strength, for Mars trines and applies to Saturn, from Virgo to Capricorn. This is particularly favorable, for Mars is applying to a planet in its sign of exaltation. Here we see his tenacity, perfectionism, and perhaps ruthlessness. Obama’s Mars is also the 10th place from his Lot of Spirit, as Saturn is in the 10th place from his Lot of Fortune. Perhaps befitting the first black man to become US President and also have the ill-fortune of taking over at the time of a national economic emergency from which we have not quite recovered, it’s fascinating that Obama’s two major lots are so closely tied to the malefics. I recall the Onion headline shortly after Obama’s victory in 2008: “Black Man Given Toughest Job in America.”
Let’s come back to the present moment and I present my favorite predictive page, a Graphic Ephemeris. I focus on the five months between the beginning of September and the end of January, 2013.
Here’s how to read a Graphic Ephemeris: the moving lines that begin on the left are the transiting planets and their signs at the beginning of this period of time. The planets that appear on the right and are the straight lines are the natal planets. Both sets of planets are depicted within their respective modes, so that planets in cardinal signs are the top third, those in fixed are in the middle third, and those in mutable signs are at the bottom. When a moving line crosses a flat line, it’s a transiting conjunction, square, or opposition.
Find the Mercury line at the top in the middle of September for that’s when it goes from Virgo (at the bottom) to Libra, we can watch it make different transits to Obama’s natal planets. You can see a basin forming in early November, and that’s Mercury’s station. At the end of October Mercury crosses into Sagittarius (the red dot) and crosses the line for the Moon in Gemini before and after the station.
What transits do we see? Mercury squares Uranus and the Node and crosses his Midheaven degree in late Scorpio. Mercury would have been in his whole-sign 10th since it entering Scorpio in October just in time for debate season: this is befitting for somebody who will have to be crafty to defend his office for the past four years. Mercury’s in Obama’s tenth sign from the Ascendant from October 5 to October 29.
As I’ve discussed above, Mars is an important planet in Obama’s chart and indicates, along with Saturn, much of his hidden drive and competitiveness. On the graphic ephemeris you can see that Mars is in Scorpio in early September, in Obama’s 10th place of career and fame. At the time of the first debate (Oct 3), Mars will square Uranus and the Node and could create some difficulties for Obama, for he may become too aggressive or impulsive. More important, however: at that time Mars is less than a degree from Obama’s Midheaven degree! And, as we will see below, the same transiting Mars is conjunct Mitt Romney’s Jupiter and Moon. Considering that the first debate is about domestic policy and that the two men genuinely do not like each other, expect much canker and conflict, enough so that some voters may be repelled by the sight and sound of it.
On October 5, two days after the first debate, Saturn enters Scorpio and Obama’s 10th place. My friends who are Obama fans may now wish I was using a different house system, for Saturn in the 10th is rather inauspicious during a political season that is seen as a referendum on the incumbent. This could place Obama in a defensive position, and he might react with more of that grim determination for which later he may become famous. Or, like Nixon during the Watergate investigations, it could bring up all the problems with his administration that have been lying hidden. I am wondering about an “October surprise”, and unforeseen development that casts a shadow on the Obama administration and makes his being re-elected far more complicated. One strong possibility is that Israel bombs Iran’s nuclear facilities, setting off one more Mideast standoff. This would certainly flow into the Presidential campaign in a way that might make Obama appear weak or vacillating. Mr. Romney could easily exploit such an occasion.
During the autumn Mercury, Mars, and Saturn all transit Obama’s 10th place of career. This is fitting for somebody whose performance will contribute how people talk of him decades and centuries from now. It also requires that he launch a full defense of his years in office without guarantee of success.
After the election there’s another important transit: in later December Saturn is in square to Obama’s Neptune. This is not a particularly personal transit, yet it may indicate the loser of a national election slipping into a depression (this is common after Presidential campaigns). It may also be Obama’s equivalent to “Heartbreak Hill”, named after a famous stretch along the Boston Marathon Route where runners’ legs predictably turn into jelly. I suggest an extended holiday vacation for Obama, regardless of the election’s outcome.
A far better transit for Obama occurs at the beginning of 2013: transiting Jupiter is at station in a square to Obama’s Pluto, which may indicate a period of high intensity, perhaps crisis management, and for a second-term President it may indicate breaking new ground. It does not seem to coincide with the fading away of a President who lost a re-election campaign. At the same time Mitt Romney has Saturn squaring his natal Pluto – this does not bode well for the challenger.
Romney – natal and transits
We first see much mutable in Romney’s chart, especially the Ascendant and its ruler Mercury in Pisces. We see temperamental but innovative Uranus in the 1st that forms a square to Mercury. Romney’s detractors would focus on his tendency to take on different political positions and even identities. The more positive side to this would be a pragmatic flexibility, an ability to adapt to all different kinds of situations.
Let’s focus on Romney’s Mercury, ruler of the Ascendant. It becomes even more important because it governs his Lot of Spirit in Virgo. Mercury is oriental, in sect in his diurnal chart, and is in the all-powerful 10th place. Mercury is fully on display in the 10th, but it is a debilitated planet. Being in the sign of its detriment and fall, it can be weak and inconsistent and wholly depending on its ruler Jupiter. Mercury’s difficulties gives Romney problems being a polished speaker (especially in comparison with Obama) and, along with ruling Jupiter in Scorpio, his tendency toward political gaffes, which is his habit of saying what he thinks.
Sun is especially strong in the 10th house and especially since it’s in a tight approaching trine to Jupiter in Scorpio. This approaching trine augments Romney’s tendency to be successful in many of his endeavors, and much of his success has been the result of hard work and patience over time. We can count his receiving the Republican nomination as the latest in a string of successes. (Being successful in a worldly way has become part of his value system.)
For Romney’s inner and more emotional life we Moon is conjunct Jupiter in Scorpio, a fixed sign. This is a Moon in fall and may indicate a great deal of drive (especially since they are governed by Mars in Pisces), an inner intensity and turbulence, and ill comfort with congeniality and informality. We seem to be well-acquainted with all these possibilities.
In the newsletter from September, 2011, I note that Saturn has a connection with Romney’s Moon and Jupiter:
“There is another important factor connected to the Moon-Jupiter conjunction: its contact to Saturn. You may be looking at the chart and asking – what contact? There are three ways of noting the same contact:
Moon/Jupiter and Saturn are in equally rising degrees; they are contra-antiscia; and they are symmetrical to 0° Aries/0° Libra.
These phrases all say the same thing. This contact is critical because it helps place Saturn in greater prominence, and helps explain his strong focus and self-discipline, the stiffness of his style, and some of his difficulty establishing a “common touch” with ordinary people. With Saturn in contact with Moon and Jupiter in Scorpio, Romney can display a controlled intensity that has helped lead him to some of his successes. It makes him personally awkward but a tactically adept politician.”
Looking at Romney’s transits for the campaign season, we first consider Mercury. Note Mercury once again moving from Libra into Scorpio, but in square to his Saturn in Leo a few days after the first debate. He may have difficulty – more than usual – explaining his political positions at that time. Toward the end of October Mercury is in conjunction with his Moon-Jupiter, right after the third debate. This may correspond to Romney “going for the jugular”, or attempting to, in the final stretch of the campaign.
Note Mars that goes into Scorpio at the end of September, and conjuncts the same Moon-Jupiter combination near the day of the first debate in Denver. This first debate may be one of those great political encounters between two ambitious men smitten by Mars.
Beginning late in October transiting Saturn forms a square to his natal Saturn, then after the election squares his Midheaven and Venus. Then, as we discussed above, Saturn forms a station in square to his Pluto. Is this transit befitting one who suddenly has to shoulder the burdens of office during a time of national difficulty, or one who faces exile from leadership of his own party?
Jupiter, a benevolent planet in Romney’s chart, is not a factor as a transiting planet during the campaign season. Yet its ingress into Gemini this past June was also its entrance into Romney’s 1st place or house. This – and common sense – was my reason for predicting that Romney would overcome intense opposition and become his party’s nominee. Although Jupiter does not transit any natal planets during the autumn campaign season, we must consider Jupiter in the 1st a positive influence at this time..
Here’s a potentially problematic transit for Romney: transiting Neptune forms a square to his Ascendant. It is a station that lasts from the middle of September until the end of 2012. Generally speaking I would consider such a transit, if it were a conjunction or an opposition, to be of supreme importance. (Al Gore was victim of a Neptune-opposite-Ascendant transit at the time of the 2000 election.) This square may manifest is a weak way, compared with a conjunction or opposition, but it cannot be good for the challenger. He may have difficulties with the physical and energetic demands on a high-intensity campaign season; he may have problems presenting himself in a consistent way; he may have lapses of judgment and make some public mistakes. After the campaign it may also manifest as a depression.
Which candidate do the transits favor? In spite of Jupiter transiting Romney’s 1st and Saturn transiting Obama’s 10th, the transits favor Obama in the longer run, but they will certainly cause his difficulties during the heat of the campaign.
Obama and Romney – progressions and solar returns
Obama has had a number of important progressions over the past several years. We could begin in December 2007, when his campaign for President was just beginning to be taken seriously: progressed Sun formed an exact trine to progressed Jupiter, in December 2007. Seven months later he clinched the nomination when progressed Mercury was conjunct progressed Mars. This progression, also in effect during the general campaign in 2008, kept him energetic and articulate. Right after the election and with sudden responsibility for the nation’s economic calamity, progressed Mercury was in square to progressed Saturn and then, in March 2009, progressed Mars came into a square to progressed Saturn.
Many people (including myself) thought Obama was being too careful at this time – he should have gone for a larger stimulus package, should have been more resourceful with the housing collapse and tougher on Wall Street. What I hadn’t seen was the dominance of Saturn in his progressions.
We fast forward to August, 2010, when Obama’s progressed Sun moved into Libra. A few months after he signed the health care bill, the nation’s mood had moved in favor of the conservative (and Tea Party) alternative to his policies. This led to the “shellacking” congressional elections that autumn, after which he would be forced to deal with Republicans. Obama had to go from Virgo’s attempting to get things everything right to Libra’s need to deal with friends and adversaries on an equal footing. This coincided with progressed Jupiter stationary direct that was exact at the beginning of 2011: his conflicts would become more ideological and would force him to define his fundamental positions and incorporate more a visionary than just a pragmatic approach. We will see this most fully in the upcoming election that is promising to hinge on philosophical differences between the two major parties.
By the autumn of 2011 Obama had given up negotiating with his congressional adversaries and was projecting himself as tougher and more resolute. In October the progressed Moon entered fiery Aries and two months later he had a progressed full moon between Moon at 1° Aries and Sun at 1° Libra. This was a culmination and a defining turn for Obama, and soon he would now seek to project himself as tough and defiant – without appearing one-sided or unwilling to make a fair compromise.
This toughness was exacerbated by another progression: progressed Mars opposite progressed Ascendant (using an Ascendant based on progressing the Midheaven by solar arc directions). It’s a good configuration for someone who wants a good fight with a worthy opponent. (Opposing his progressed Ascendant, progressed Mars signifies his political adversaries attempting to ruin him – but this would not have been new for him.
All this has continued to the present and will beyond. The Obama camp ran a tough and personal ad campaign over the summer that surprised many politicians and pundits. With transiting Mars in the 10th place along with these progressed positions, Obama will undoubtedly not let up (nor will his adversaries) until the vote counting is over.
Now let’s look at Romney’s current progressions. Once again we see the progressed Moon in Aries, and, importantly, Moon is moving toward a conjunction with the progressed Midheaven that is exact on October 8. In a rather auspicious configuration for him, Moon then forms a trine to progressed Pluto, and a few weeks after election day, Pluto will trine his progressed Midheaven.
The progressions that form afterwards, however, are not noteworthy. Toward the end of 2013 progressed Venus conjuncts progressed Mars: for a President Romney, this could indicate a more collaborative approach nationally or internationally. However, we must factor in that both progressed Venus and Mars would be in Aries, a sign not easily given to negotiation or compromise. As a former Presidential candidate this configuration will probably manifest in his personal life in ways not easily determined.
For some background on Romney’s progressions, he had a progressed third quarter Moon in November, 2008, after his rival for the Republican nomination that year, John McCain, went down to defeat. This helps confirm that Romney’s plans for 2012 began not longer after the election of 2008 was over. In the intervening years Romney schooled himself further and worked to overcome previous obstacles, and during this time his progressed Sun opposed his progressed Jupiter (December, 2009) and progressed Mercury opposed progressed Jupiter (October, 2010). All this culminated when progressed Sun and progressed Mercury were conjunct, at the beginning of 2011. This was a very productive time for him.
Both Obama and Romney have had strong progressions in the time leading up to the present Presidential campaign. Both men used this time well to prepare themselves for the fight that is now between them. It seems, though, that Obama’s progressions would be more personally transformative than that of Romney; a refashioned Obama, one wiser and more warrior-like, would be in a stronger position for re-election.
When we take a first glance at Obama’s solar return (set for Washington DC) one becomes more optimistic about his future. Benefics Jupiter and Venus are both in the 10th place of career. Jupiter is the ruler of the 7th house that, this year, would indicate adversity. Venus is in good standing as “Lord of the Year”, the sign ruler of his profected Ascendant. Venus is also the Moon’s next aspect, as Moon is moving from a square with the benefic Jupiter to a square to the benefic Venus. This configuration shows advancement through luck far more than through skill.
Mercury, the ruler of the 10th and the ruler of the Ascendant, is in the difficult 12th place along with the Sun, and this would diminish the results of his good fortune. Mercury’s position is redeemed somewhat by its being conjunct its natal position. Nonetheless, Obama has a fortunate solar return that does not hint at his being cast into the political wilderness.
Now let’s take a look at Romney’s solar return that has its own strengths. Moon is in the 10th but is in fall, a sign of difficulty. The 10th house is governed my Mars in the 8th, not a great place for Mars. However, in Obama’s chart the 10th house ruler is also Mars in Virgo in the 8th. (Obama has done very well in his lifetime with the same configuration in his birth chart.) In Romney’s solar return there is a strong conjunction between Mercury and Uranus in Aries and that can only help his mental creativity, but can make him more likely to blurt out things that are unusual and impolitic, as he has done several times on a national stage.
The most positive feature of his chart is the configuration of Venus and Jupiter in Taurus, in trine to Pluto in the 12th and Mars in the 8th. This is surely a positive feature and it helps the ruler of the 10th quite a bit. This rewards hard work and vigorous activity. This may have been enough to help him triumph over his Republican opponents for their party’s nomination; it may not be enough to account for him winning the nation’s Presidency.
Obama’s solar return for this year is more fortunate than that of his opponent.
Obama and Romney – Hellenistic indicators
These are the ancient chronocrator or planetary period systems, whereby a “general” planet (not a “major planet”) is dominant for a larger period of time. During the general period different planets may take over for shorter time periods – the “specific” planet (not a “minor planet”), which may be more relevant to the immediate situations. We would look at the natures of the planets involved and how they appear in the natal chart. In the interests of keeping this presentation of an introductory nature, I will not go into further time-divisions of planetary rulers. To find out more about these systems, take a look at the last two chapters of my Astrological Roots: The Hellenistic Legacy.
I begin with decennials that have had a longer more continuous history in ancient and medieval astrology. The general planet is in charge for 10 years and 9 months (of 360 days!), and different planets become the specific planets for months based on the numbers of the planets in the order in which they appear in the natal chart.
Obama began a Mars-Mars period in late 2003: within six months he would become a national figure after the 2004 Democratic convention and was easily elected to the Senate. Mars is the ruler of his tenth house.
Obama was elected President when Moon was his specific ruler. Moon is happily placed in the 5th and applies to natal Sun. Venus took over as the specific planet right before his “shellacking” in the 2010 Congressional elections, and Mercury in the spring of 2011. In this system Mercury has a specific period 20-month (of 30 days) that would continue through this year, giving him Mars/Mercury during all this time. This is not a bad planetary combination to have during a particularly contentious second half of his term and his re-election campaign. Happily for Obama, his decennials in January 2013 are Mars-Sun: they do not particularly accord to Obama going back to Chicago as the ousted leader of a failed Presidency. However, things may become more difficult for him later, for in mid-2014 his decennials become Saturn-Saturn, and recall that his natal Saturn is out of sect and in the 12th place.
Romney’s current decennials are quite impressive. Just before the 2010 Congressional elections and a time of preparation for his Presidential run, Romney entered a Mercury-Mercury period. Although Mercury is debilitated in Pisces, it’s in his 10th place and rules his Ascendant. Far better for him, though, was that at the end of May 2012, by the time he had overtaken his Republican rivals, his decennials became Mercury-Sun. One could do far worse than having Sun as specific ruler when trying to become a nation’s leader! This remains in place until the end of 2013 when, more problematically, Saturn takes over as specific planetary lord.
Advantage for decennials is Romney, although Obama’s turn better a few weeks after Inauguration Day. Judging from this technique, neither candidate seems consigned to a political wilderness.
The next Hellenistic technique is zodiacal releasing that takes the signs of significant natal positions (particularly the Lots of Fortune and Spirit) and proceeds in zodiacal order using the numbers of the planets to make years (of 360 day years).
Obama’s Lot of Fortune is in Aries; in 2003 the zodiacal releasing went into Cancer, the place of his Moon in Gemini. At this point he was in the running as Senator from Illinois. From the summer of 2007 until spring of 2009, they were Cancer-Virgo, and remember that Virgo is the location of Obama’s natal Mars and governs Mercury in the 7th. Just after the Congressional elections in 2010 his releasing from Fortune was Cancer-Scorpio that should have been better for him, since Scorpio is his 10th place. However, this year they are the inauspicious Cancer-Capricorn that emphasizes Obama’s 12th place Saturn. This is in effect until the spring of 2014, since Capricorn has 27 (30-day) months in this system. This could consign Obama into a political wilderness.
Romney’s zodiacal releasing from Fortune are much better. Gemini-Gemini began in the spring of 2011. Gemini is his 1st place and his natal Mercury is in his 10th and indeed this has been a time for him to be in view on a grand scale. Interestingly, though, the end of November features Gemini-Cancer that highlights his natal Moon in Scorpio. This is not so good for him after the general election: things can go downhill for him very suddenly.
The zodiacal releasing from Obama’s Lot of Spirit in Sagittarius, it was Aquarius-Aquarius (his 1st place) in 2000, the year he began his first political campaign, a losing attempt at a seat in the House of Representatives. He was elected President under Aquarius-Cancer that highlighted his Venus in Cancer. It’s been Aquarius-Libra since April of this year, that again highlights his Venus, and in December it becomes Aquarius-Scorpio, the latter sign being his 10th. This is a positive feature for Obama.
Romney’s zodiacal releasing from Spirit entered Capricorn in 2001 where it will stay for 27 years (of 360 days each). During his successful run for the Republican nomination it was Capricorn-Cancer and since August it has been Capricorn-Leo, well into 2014. This recent combination has a good-news/bad news quality for Romney – Leo does suggest his Sun in the 10th but is also the place for his natal Saturn. Both factors may be operating at the present time: Romney has a tremendous influence and visibility on the national scene but his laboring under many constrictions: his own pubic awkwardness up close, difficulties keeping together a Republican coalition, and an uphill battle to win enough must-win states in November.
There’s an interesting commentary by astrologer Patrick Watson who analyses the zodiacal releasing from Spirit for both Romney and Obama and predicts that Obama will win in November. He uses 3rd and 4th order planetary lords and the kind of fine detail a Hellenistic-oriented astrologer would love. His material is beyond the scope of my presentation, but here’s the link: http://politicalastrologyblog.com/2012/04/29/prediction-for-the-2012-us-presidential-election/
In my view, zodiacal releasing from Fortune strongly favors Romney; from Spirit Obama has an upper hand.
We conclude our Hellenistic indicators with circumambulations, the ancestor of modern progressions and directions. One moves a position, such as the Sun and Midheaven for one’s public life, at the rate that their zodiacal positions move over the Ascendant at one’s natal latitude. When a directed position aspects a natal planet this becomes like a planetary ruler for that area of life; when that position enters the terms or bounds of a planet, that planet also becomes important. The relationship between these two factors is unclear from the sources and this Presidential election may be a fascinating case study.
Depending on whether we use the Sun or Midheaven, Obama’s circumambulations give completely different readings. The directed Sun aspected Saturn by trine in June, 2008 and this condition prevails until May 2014 when Jupiter takes over. Additionally the term or bound ruler was Jupiter up to 2011; since then and for a very long time it will be Saturn. In contrast, Obama’s directed Midheaven was opposite Venus in 1998, and was in the terms/bounds of Jupiter in early 2004 and Venus in May 2011 until the end of 2015.
Romney’s circumambulations from Sun and Midheaven emphasize his Sun, a natural planet for a political leader. Romney’s directed Sun went into a square (across signs of short ascension) to his natal Sun in the summer of 2009, and the directed Midheaven went into a sextile to his natal Sun in September, 2011. However, the terms/bounds of the Sun have been governed by Saturn since June and the directed Midheaven has been governed by the terms/bounds of Saturn since April 2012.
Circumambulations appear to be inconclusive, because of the differing determinations of the directions of the Sun and Midheaven and because of the differences between the aspects to a directed position and the planetary rulers of the terms/bounds they enter during this time for these two men.
We all await November.
