G. Gaeta Counting symmetry breaking solutions to symmetric variational problems (33K, Plain TeX) ABSTRACT. By combining the Michel's geometric theory of symmetry breaking and classical result from variational analysis, we obtain a lower bound on critical points with given symmetry $H \sse G$ of a potential symmetric under $G$. The result is obtained by applying Ljusternik-Schnirelman category in the group orbit space, and can be extendeded along the same lines to more general situations.