Twitter Proves That Love Is All Around Us

Twitter is not known for being the happiest place online — excessive trolls spewing racist commentary make sure of that. But in time for Valentine's Day, the social network has revealed the 10 days in the past year when users mentioned the word "love" the most. If you're in need of a lift after political events of the past few weeks, this should do it. Among the 10, four of the days are more expected: the day before Valentine's Day, the day after Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day itself, and the day before Thanksgiving. After all, holidays tend to bring out the touchy-feeliness in people. But the other six are more surprising and, for that reason, all the more powerful. The day with the most love was, shockingly, Election Day. After what was one of the most hostile presidential campaigns in history, people from both political parties united, at least briefly, with messages of love on Twitter. Two of the other days in the top 10 were also politically tied: June 6, 2016, the day Hillary Clinton was named the Democratic presidential nominee, and July 25, 2016, the day Michelle Obama gave her speech at the Democratic National Convention.

Two of the days with the most love came after an act of hatred. People showed the most compassion on June 12 and June 13, 2016 — the day of and after the Orlando nightclub shooting.

The last day rounding out the list was a bit more random — August 28, 2016, when the VMAs were held. What was the cause of all this unexpected affection? You can probably contribute at least some of the love to Drake. His speech about Rihanna apparently warmed even the coldest of Twitter hearts. See the full ranked list below. And take comfort in knowing that even during the toughest times, love really can be found all around us. Or, at least, in our Twitter feeds.

1. 11/8/2016 (Election Day)
2. 2/13/2016 (the day before Valentine’s Day)
3. 6/7/2016 (Hillary named Democratic presidential nominee)
4. 6/12/2016 (Orlando nightclub shooting)
5. 7/25/2016 (DNC - Michelle Obama’s speech)
6. 11/23/2016 (the day before Thanksgiving)
7. 6/13/2016 (the day after the Orlando nightclub shooting)
8. 2/15/2016 (the day after Valentine’s Day)
9. 8/28/2016 (VMAs)
10. 2/14/2016 (Valentine’s Day)