Scott Rasmussen's Number of the Day for February 2, 2026
The Number of the Day columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.
February 2, 2026: One hundred and thirty-nine years ago, on February 2, 1887, Groundhog Day was celebrated for the first time. The origin of the celebration comes from an old Christian tradition called Candlemas. Clergy would give out candles during the winter, with the candles representing the length of winter and how cold it might be. It would be the Germans who would add an animal to the tradition. In Germany the hedgehog was used for predictions, but when Germans started to settle in Pennsylvania, they switched to the groundhog.[1]
Scott Rasmussen is the president of RMG Research, Inc. and founder of the Napolitan Institute.
Each weekday, Scott Rasmussen’s Number of the Day explores interesting and newsworthy topics at the intersection of culture, politics, and technology.
- January 30, 2026-229 executive orders issued by President Trump in the first year of his second term
- January 29, 2026-50% of voters say America is still the land of opportunity
- January 28, 2026-111 years ago, the William P. Frye was destroyed by the Germans
- January 27, 2026-17% of voters say most federal spending is waste and fraud
- January 26, 2026-61% of voters favor President Trump’s credit card interest rate cap
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Columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.
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