2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut

Summary

The 2012 U.S. House of Representatives elections in Connecticut were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the five congressional representatives from the state, one from each of the state's five congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election, a U.S. Senate election, and state legislature races.

2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut

← 2010 November 6, 2012 (2012-11-06) 2014 →

All 5 Connecticut seats to the United States House of Representatives
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Democratic Republican
Last election 5 0
Seats won 5 0
Seat change Steady Steady
Popular vote 951,281 490,490
Percentage 64.87% 33.45%
Swing Increase6.18% Decrease6.99%

Primaries to select Republican and Democratic candidates in some districts were held on Tuesday, August 14, 2012.[1]

The Democratic candidate won in each of the five districts on election day.

Overview edit

The table below shows the total number and percentage of votes, as well as the number of seats gained and lost by each political party in the election for the United States House of Representatives in Connecticut. In addition, the voter turnout and the number of votes not valid are listed below.

United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut, 2012[2]
Party Votes Percentage Seats
Democratic 951,281* 64.87% 5
Republican 490,490 33.45% 0
Green 9,115 0.62% 0
Libertarian 3,511 0.24% 0
Others 12,022 0.82% 0
Total 1,466,419 100% 5

District 1 edit

Democratic incumbent John Larson, who had represented the 1st district since 1999, sought re-election.[3]

Democratic primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit

Republican primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
  • John Decker, financial planner[4]
Eliminated in primary edit
  • Mike McDonald, member of the Windsor Town Council,[5]

Results edit

Decker won the nomination[6] at the Republican state convention on May 18, garnering 69% of available delegates.

General election edit

Results edit

Connecticut's 1st congressional district, 2012 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John B. Larson (incumbent)[8] 206,973 69.7
Republican John Henry Decker 82,321 27.7
Green S. Michael DeRosa 5,477 1.8
Independent Matthew M. Corey 2,290 0.8
Total votes 297,061 100.0
Democratic hold

District 2 edit

Democratic incumbent Joe Courtney, who had represented the 2nd district since 2007, said in February 2011 that he would not run for the U.S. Senate seat to be vacated by Joe Lieberman.[9] Courtney ran for re-election.[3]

Democratic primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit

Republican primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
Eliminated in primary edit
Withdrawn edit

Primary results edit

At the Republican state convention on May 18, delegates in the second district endorsed Formica. Formica and Novak took part in the August 14 primary, which Formica won.[12]

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Paul M. Formica 14,256 66.9
Republican Daria Novak 7,050 33.1
Total votes 21,306 100.0

General election edit

Results edit

Connecticut's 2nd congressional district, 2012 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Joe Courtney (incumbent)[13] 204,708 68.2
Republican Paul Formica 88,103 29.4
Green Colin D. Bennett 3,638 1.2
Libertarian Daniel J. Reale 3,511 1.2
Total votes 299,960 100.0
Democratic hold

District 3 edit

Democratic incumbent Rosa DeLauro, who had represented the 3rd district since 1991, ran for re-election.[3]

Democratic primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit

Republican primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
Eliminated in primary edit

Results edit

At the Republican state convention on May 18, delegates in the third district endorsed Winsley.[16] Following the Republican state convention, Steve Packard announced his intention to run for the office as an independent.[17]

General election edit

Results edit

Connecticut's 3rd congressional district, 2012 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Rosa DeLauro (incumbent)[18] 217,573 74.7
Republican Wayne Winsley 73,726 25.3
Independent Hector W. Concepcion (write-in) 1 0.0
Independent Stephen "Steve" Packard (write-in) 1 0.0
Total votes 291,301 100.0
Democratic hold

District 4 edit

Democratic incumbent Jim Himes, who had represented the 4th district since 2009, said in December 2010 that he would not run for the U.S. Senate in 2012.[19] Himes ran for re-election.[3]

Democratic primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit

Republican primary edit

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
  • Steve Obsitnik, chair and chief executive of Quintel Technology[20]
Eliminated in primary edit
Declined edit

Results edit

At the Republican state convention on May 18, delegates in the fourth district endorsed Obsitnik. Meek met the threshold required to force a primary, but decided not to challenge the endorsed candidate.[25] Obsitnik lost to Himes.

General election edit

Endorsements edit

Steve Obsitnik (R)
Organizations

Predictions edit

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[27] Safe D November 5, 2012
Rothenberg[28] Safe D November 2, 2012
Roll Call[29] Safe D November 4, 2012
Sabato's Crystal Ball[30] Safe D November 5, 2012
NY Times[31] Safe D November 4, 2012
RCP[32] Likely D November 4, 2012
The Hill[33] Safe D November 4, 2012

Results edit

Connecticut's 4th congressional district, 2012 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jim Himes (incumbent) 175,929 60.0
Republican Steve Obsitnik 117,503 40.0
Total votes 293,432 100.0
Democratic hold

District 5 edit

Incumbent Democrat Chris Murphy had represented the 5th district since 2007. He announced that he would not seek re-election for a fourth term. He instead ran for the U.S. Senate to replace Independent Democrat Joe Lieberman, who retired from the Senate. Murphy won election to the Senate.

Democratic primary edit

Prior to the Democratic primary, Donovan received the endorsement of the Connecticut Working Families Party and was granted placement on its ballot line for the general election.[34] On August 30, Donovan withdrew his name from the Working Families line to allow the minor party to endorse Elizabeth Esty, the primary winner.[35]

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
Eliminated in primary edit
Disqualified edit
  • Randy Yale, insurance underwriter[39][40]
Withdrawn edit

Primary results edit

Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elizabeth Etsy 12,717 44.6
Democratic Chris Donovan 9,216 32.3
Democratic Dan Roberti 6,582 23.1
Total votes 28,515 100.0

Republican primary edit

At the Republican state convention on May 18, delegates in the fifth district endorsed Roraback. Roraback, Wilson-Foley, Bernier, and Greenberg took part in the August 14 primary.

Candidates edit

Nominee edit
Eliminated in primary edit
Withdrawn edit
Declined edit

Endorsements edit

Lisa Wilson-Foley
Organizations

Primary results edit

Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Andrew Roraback 9,536 32.1
Republican Mark Greenberg 8,033 27.0
Republican Justin Bernier 6,167 20.8
Republican Lisa Wilson-Foley 5,966 20.1
Total votes 29,702 100.0

General election edit

Endorsements edit

Elizabeth Esty (D)
Andrew Roraback (R)
Organizations

Predictions edit

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report Tossup November 5, 2012
Rothenberg[28] Tossup November 2, 2012
Roll Call[29] Lean D November 4, 2012
Sabato's Crystal Ball[30] Lean D November 5, 2012
NY Times[31] Tossup November 4, 2012
RCP[32] Tossup November 4, 2012
The Hill[33] Lean D November 4, 2012

Results edit

Connecticut's 5th congressional district, 2012 [7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elizabeth Esty[51] 146,098 51.3
Republican Andrew Roraback[52] 138,637 48.7
Independent John Pistone (write-in) 12 0.0
Independent Russ Jaeger (write-in) 10 0.0
Total votes 284,757 100.0
Democratic hold

References edit

  1. ^ "Candidate Committees, Exploratory Committees, and Durational Political Committees Organized for the November 6, 2012 Election" (PDF). State of Connecticut, State Elections Enforcement Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 17, 2012. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
  2. ^ "USSenCD". Archived from the original on November 13, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charles J. (February 14, 2012). "Himes has commanding fundraising lead". The Stamford Advocate. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
  4. ^ Collins, Steve (March 19, 2012). "John Decker to run for Larson's 1st District seat". The Bristol Press. Retrieved May 15, 2012.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ McKinley, Julian (January 5, 2012). "McDonald to Run for Congress". Windsor Patch. Retrieved January 12, 2012.
  6. ^ Martel, Allen (May 18, 2012). "John Decker Wins GOP Endorsement to Face Larson for US Congress". The Hartford Courant. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d e "11/06/2012-General Election Results Presidential Electors For" (PDF). portal.ct.gov.
  8. ^ Includes 14,133 votes received on the line of the Connecticut Working Families Party, which cross-endorsed
  9. ^ "Joe Courtney: Not Running For U.S. Senate". Hartford Courant. February 21, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  10. ^ "Republican declares 2nd run for Congress". Norwich Bulletin. April 22, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  11. ^ Altimari, Daniela (May 14, 2012). "Two More Republicans Jump Into CT2". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on May 18, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  12. ^ Mark Pazniokas; Jacqueline Rabe Thomas; Aroosa Masroor (August 14, 2012). "Esty, Roraback emerge as victors in 5th District race". Archived from the original on August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  13. ^ Includes 15,264 votes received on the line of the Connecticut Working Families Party, which cross-endorsed
  14. ^ Malik, Alia (October 18, 2011). "Motivational speaker from Naugatuck to take on DeLauro". Republican-American. Archived from the original on October 22, 2011. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  15. ^ "Statement of Organization" (PDF). Federal Election Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 3, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
  16. ^ Christopher Keating; Daniela Altimari (May 18, 2012). "Roraback Wins GOP Endorsement In 5th District But Primary Assured". Hartford Courant. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  17. ^ Packard, Steve. "Steve Packard 2012". Archived from the original on April 15, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  18. ^ Includes 20,410 votes received on the line of the Connecticut Working Families Party, which cross-endorsed
  19. ^ House, Dennis (December 10, 2010). "Himes Rules out Running for Lieberman Seat in 2012". The Hartfordite. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  20. ^ Lockhart, Brian (November 16, 2011). "Westport businessman running for Congress". Connecticut Post. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  21. ^ Altimari, Daniela (November 17, 2011). "Republican Chris Meek Formally Announces His Run for Congress in CT-4". Hartford Courant. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  22. ^ Vigdor, Neil (October 6, 2011). "Himes faces growing field of challengers". Connecticut Post. Retrieved October 26, 2011.
  23. ^ Vigdor, Neil (March 9, 2012). "Greenwich Tea Party event sparsely attended". Connecticut Post. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  24. ^ Vigdor, Neil (January 16, 2012). "Debicella to GOP: Not your fella in 2012". Hearst Connecticut Media Group. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
  25. ^ Vigdor, Neil (May 26, 2012). "Obsitnik won't face primary for GOP House nod". Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  26. ^ a b "CANDIDATES". gopyoungguns.com. Archived from the original on October 29, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  27. ^ "The Cook Political Report — Charts – 2012 House Competitive Races". Cookpolitical.com. November 5, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
  28. ^ a b "House Ratings". Rothenbergpoliticalreport.com. November 2, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
  29. ^ a b [1], as of November 4, 2012
  30. ^ a b Crystal Ball, as of November 5, 2012
  31. ^ a b House Race Ratings, The New York Times, as of November 4, 2012
  32. ^ a b [2], as of November 4, 2012
  33. ^ a b "House Ratings". The Hill. November 3, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
  34. ^ Altimari, Daniela (December 20, 2011). "Endorsements Boost 2 Democrats In 5th District Race". Hartford Courant. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  35. ^ Jacqueline Rabe Thomas; Keith M. Phaneuf (August 30, 2012). "It's official, Donovan drops out of race". CTMirror.org. Retrieved September 1, 2012.
  36. ^ Turmelle, Luther (March 29, 2011). "Wife of DEP Commissioner May Get in Fifth District Race". Litchfield County Times. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  37. ^ Connors, Bob (May 23, 2011). "Donovan Running for Congress". NBC Connecticut. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  38. ^ a b Boughton, Kathryn (April 13, 2011). "Kent Democrat Dan Roberti Entering 5th District Race". Litchfield County Times. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  39. ^ Pazniokas, Mark (February 26, 2012). "Donovan tries to bar negative ads in 5th CD primary". The Connecticut Mirror. Archived from the original on February 29, 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  40. ^ Godin, Mary Ellen (May 14, 2012). "Donovan easily wins nomination, but two opponents to primary". Record-Journal. Archived from the original on April 12, 2015. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  41. ^ Tuz, Susan (May 12, 2011). "New Preston man seeks 5th District seat". Connecticut Post. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  42. ^ Thomason, Rick (October 21, 2011). "Roraback officially in the running for 5th District seat". The Register Citizen. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
  43. ^ Miller, Robert (January 26, 2011). "Bernier announces he'll run in 5th District". The News-Times. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  44. ^ Campbell, Ricky (June 24, 2011). "Fifth Congressional District GOP candidates bat around the issues at meeting". The Register Citizen. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
  45. ^ Sposato, Jennifer (April 5, 2011). "Former FBI Agent Running for Congress". NBC Connecticut. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  46. ^ Stuart, Christine (May 16, 2012). "Clark Drops Bid, Endorses Roraback". CT News Junkie. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
  47. ^ D'Aprile, Shane (February 1, 2011). "Caligiuri passes on another run for Rep. Murphy's seat". The Hill. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  48. ^ "Maggie's List is pleased to endorse these conservative women candidates:". maggieslist.org. Archived from the original on July 26, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  49. ^ "RED TO BLUE 2012". DCCC. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  50. ^ "Help Our Candidates Win!". emilyslist.org. Archived from the original on November 14, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  51. ^ Includes 8,609 votes received on the line of the Connecticut Working Families Party, which cross-endorsed
  52. ^ Includes 9,710 votes as listed as an Independent on the ballot.

External links edit

  • Elections and Voting from the Connecticut Secretary of State
  • United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut, 2012 at Ballotpedia
  • Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets
  • Outside spending at the Sunlight Foundation
Preceded by
2010 elections
United States House elections in Connecticut
2012
Succeeded by
2014 elections