2012 Democratic Party presidential candidates explained

Election Name:	2012 Democratic Party presidential primaries
Country:	United States
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	2008 Democratic Party presidential candidates
Previous Year:	2008
Next Election:	2016 Democratic Party presidential candidates
Next Year:	2016
Election Date:	Democratic primaries January 3 to June 5, 2012
Candidate1:	Barack Obama
Party1:	Democratic Party (United States)
Home State1:	Illinois
States Carried1:	50+DC
Popular Vote1:	7,376,659
Percentage1:	90.24%
Candidate2:	John Wolfe, Jr.
Party2:	Democratic Party (United States)
Home State2:	Tennessee
States Carried2:	0
Popular Vote2:	116,639
Percentage2:	1.43%
President
Before Election:	Barack Obama
Posttitle:	Democratic nominee
After Election:	Barack Obama

During the 2012 presidential primaries, 51 individuals sought the nomination of the Democratic Party. Incumbent President Barack Obama won the nomination unanimously at the 2012 Democratic National Convention and was re-elected as president in the general election by defeating Republican nominee Mitt Romney.As expected for the incumbent president, Obama won every primary election, but faced more difficulty than projected. Fifteen additional candidates appeared on primary ballots, and of these, four appeared on more than one ballot. Four qualified for convention delegates including: attorney John Wolfe, Jr., prison inmate Keith Russell Judd, perennial candidate Jim Rogers, and anti-abortion activist Randall Terry. Each of these had their delegates stripped prior to the convention due to technicalities.

Thirty-four additional candidates filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to run for president, but either withdrew from the race before the primaries or did not appear on any primary ballots.

Candidates

The following individuals formally announced their campaigns for the Democratic Party presidential nomination in 2012 and/or filed as a candidate for such with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

Challengers

On multiple primary ballots

The following candidates appeared on more than one primary ballot.

Candidate	Background	Campaign notes	Ballot access & vote total
John Wolfe Jr. (Website) (FEC filing) (Wikinews)	Born 1954 Attorney from Tennessee Democratic Party nominee for U.S. House of Representatives for Tennessee's 3rd congressional district, 2002, 2004, 2010	Declared his candidacy in late 2011.^[6] Participated in the lesser-known candidates forum. Paid at least $1,000 for ballot access.^[7] ^[8] Won 12 percent of the vote in Louisiana, and qualified for three delegates,^[9] which the Louisiana Democratic Party stripped due to his lack of a delegate slate.^[10] Had the strongest showing for an Obama challenger with 42 percent of the vote in Arkansas,^[11] qualifying for 19 delegates,^[12] which the Arkansas Democratic Party stripped due to his lack of a delegate slate. Unsuccessfully sued the Democratic Party to regain the stripped delegates.	NH, MO, LA, AR, TX 116,639 (1.43 percent overall)
Darcy Richardson (Website) (FEC filing) (Wikinews)	Born 1955 Historian from Florida Consumer Party nominee for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, 1988 Campaign manager of the Eugene McCarthy presidential campaign, 1988 Independent candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Florida, 2010	Announced his candidacy October 26, 2011.^[13] Paid $8,125 for ballot access.^[14] Had his strongest showing in the Oklahoma primary, where he won 6.36 percent of the total. Suspended his campaign in April 2012 prior to the Texas primary.^[15]	NH,^[16] MO, OK, LA, TX 41,730 (0.51 percent overall)
Bob Ely (Website) (FEC filing) (Wikinews)	Born 1958 Entrepreneur from Illinois Interim CEO of PayDQ Services, 2001 Owner of The Canton Press-News Journal, 2010–present	Created his campaign website and filed with FEC on November 28, 2011.^[17] Paid at least $4,500 for ballot access.^[18] Had his strongest showing in Louisiana, where he won 6.57 percent of the vote.^[19]	NH, LA, OK, TX 29,947 (0.37 percent overall)^[20]
Randall Terry (Website) (FEC filing)	Born 1959 Anti-abortion activist from West Virginia Founder and leader of Operation Rescue, 1988-1994^[21]	Announced his candidacy in January 2011.^[22] ^[23] Paid at least $3,500 for ballot access.^[24] ^[25] Participated in the lesser-known candidates forum. Unsuccessfully attempted to run a campaign advertisement depicting photos of aborted fetuses during Super Bowl XLVI. Had his strongest showing in Oklahoma, where he received 18 percent of the vote, and qualified for seven delegates, which the Oklahoma Democratic Party stripped due to his lack of a delegate slate.^[26] Continued his campaign as an Independent and appeared on the general election ballots in Kentucky, Nebraska, and West Virginia, receiving 13,112 votes.^[27]	NH, MO, OK 22,734 (0.28 percent overall)

On one primary ballot

The following candidates appeared on only one primary ballot.

FEC-filed candidates

The following presidential candidates filed with the FEC, but either did not appear on any primary ballots or withdrew before the primary elections.

Candidate	Background	Campaign notes
Jeff Boss (Website) (FEC filing)	Born 1963^[58] Conspiracy theorist from New Jersey "Vote Here" presidential nominee, 2008	Declared his candidacy with the FEC in July 2009.^[59] Based his campaign on the claim that he witnessed the National Security Agency (NSA) orchestrate the September 11 attacks.^[60] Amended his FEC filing in March 2012 to change his party affiliation to Independent.^[61] Appeared on the general ballot in New Jersey as the "NSA did 9/11" candidate and received 1,024 votes.^[62]
Harry Braun (Website) (FEC Filing)	Born 1948 Energy consultant^[63] from Arizona Democratic Party presidential candidate, 2004	Declared his candidacy with the FEC in August 2011.^[64] Based his candidacy on environmental protection and his proposed Democracy Amendment, requiring a majority vote of the electorate for all government action Used his soapbox at the Iowa State Fair to connect environmental concerns with the Down syndrome diagnosis of Sarah Palin's son Trig, prompting a rebuke from the Iowa Democratic Party spokesman^[65] Withdrew from the Democratic race in November 2011, claiming the party was ignoring him,^[66] and amended the party affiliation on his FEC filing to Independent^[67]
Warren Mosler (Website) (FEC filing)	Born 1949 Economist from the Virgin Islands Founder and president of Mosler Automotive, 1985–present	Declared his candidacy with the FEC in February 2009.^[68] Ran as a Tea Party Democrat^[69] Withdrew his candidacy in April 2010^[70] to run for U.S. Senate in Connecticut.

• Warren Roderick Ashe (FEC Filing)
• George Ballard (FEC Filing)
• Will Blakley (FEC Filing)
• James Carroll (FEC Filing)
• Willie Carter (FEC Filing), (Website)
• Perry Duwhile Coleman (FEC Filing)
• Anthony Joseph Cronin Jr. (FEC filing)
• Darren Dunsmoor (FEC filing)
• Mills Wrenal Godwin (FEC filing)
• Patrice Eloise Hardcastle (FEC filing)

• Raphael Herman (FEC filing)
• Princess Khadajah M. Jacob-Fambro (FEC filing)
• Cody Judy (FEC filing), (Website)
• Dennis Knill (FEC filing), (Website)
• Leah Lax (FEC filing), (Website)
• Kip Lee (FEC filing)
• Mark Levetin (FEC filing)
• James A. Miller (FEC filing)
• Mike Moloney (FEC filing)
• Dave Montgomery (FEC filing)

• Deonia Neveu (FEC filing), (Website)
• Jennifer Ney (FEC filing)
• Dean A. Phillips (FEC filing)
• Jeff Proud (FEC filing), (Website)
• Sarah Rockefeller (FEC filing)
• Philip Rogone (FEC filing)
• Wil Stand (FEC filing)
• Gary Stephens (FEC filing)
• Dr. Damian Stone (FEC filing)
• George Washington Williams (FEC filing)
• Michael Yost (FEC filing)

Speculated

The following individuals were the object of presidential speculation in past media reports, but did not signal an interest in running.

Declined to run

The following individuals speculated to run for the Democratic Party's 2012 presidential nomination, announced they would not run.

See also

• Republican Party presidential candidates, 2012
• United States third party and independent presidential candidates, 2012
• 2012 United States presidential election timeline

External links

• 2012 Presidential Form 2 Filers at the Federal Election Commission (FEC)

Notes and References

1. News: Obama launches 2012 campaign with web video. Condon. Stephanie. April 4, 2011. CBS News. June 24, 2013. May 25, 2012. https://archive.today/20120525203256/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20050339-503544.html. dead.
2. News: Obama clinches Democratic nomination . cnn.com . April 3, 2012 . April 3, 2012 . April 4, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120404203415/http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/04/03/breaking-obama-clinches-democratic-nomination/ . dead .
3. News: Democrats officially nominate Obama. https://archive.today/20130629100349/http://thehill.com/conventions-2012/dem-convention-charlotte/247859-democrats-officially-nominate-obama. dead. June 29, 2013. Becker. Bernie. Jonathan Easley. September 6, 2012. The Hill. June 24, 2013.
4. News: Convention vote expected to be unanimous for Obama. Tau. Byron. September 3, 2012. Politico. June 24, 2013.
5. News: Obama wins a second term . . November 7, 2012 . November 7, 2012 . Barabak, Mark Z..
6. Web site: Chattanooga man John Wolfe running for president in New Hampshire . . December 20, 2011 . March 29, 2012 . Carroll, Chris.
7. Web site: Elections: 2012 Presidential Preference Primary in Missouri (Candidate Filing Information). Missouri Secretary of State. June 30, 2013.
8. Web site: Texas Democratic Presidential Primary Ballot Has Three Candidates So Far. December 15, 2011. Ballot Access News. June 30, 2013.
9. Web site: Democratic challenger to Barack Obama picks off delegates in Louisiana . . March 27, 2012 . March 29, 2012 . Tilove, Jonathan.
10. Web site: President Obama will clinch renomination Tuesday, but it may not be unanimous. Tilove. Jonathan. April 23, 2012. The Times-Picayune. May 23, 2012.
11. Web site: Election Map 2012: Live Voting Results. Politico. May 23, 2012.
12. Web site: Arkansas Democratic Delegation 2012. The Green Papers. May 23, 2012.
13. Web site: 'Why I'm Running for President'. Richardson. Darcy. October 26, 2011. Battleground Blog. May 23, 2012.
14. Web site: Darcy Richardson For President Committee FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303215815/http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/463/12030720463/12030720463.pdf#navpanes=0. March 3, 2016. dead.
15. Darcy Richardson suspends Democratic Party presidential campaign. April 28, 2012. Wikinews. May 23, 2012.
16. News: Even Democratic ballot will be crowded in New Hampshire primary . . October 28, 2011 . November 4, 2011 . Memoli, Michael A..
17. Web site: Bob Ely FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160131234911/http://images.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/fecimg/?_11030692828+0. January 31, 2016. dead.
18. Web site: Bob Ely For President Committee FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235307/http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/469/12952192469/12952192469.pdf#navpanes=0. March 3, 2016. dead.
19. Web site: Louisiana Democratic Delegation 2012. The Green Papers. May 24, 2012.
20. Web site: Democratic Convention 2012. The Green Papers. June 24, 2013.
21. Web site: Operation Rescue. Montana Human Rights Network. May 23, 2012.
22. Web site: Anti-Abortion Activist Randall Terry Eyes Presidency, Graphic TV Ad During Super Bowl. Dwyer. Devin. January 18, 2011. ABC News. June 27, 2013.
23. Web site: Pro-Life Activist Randall Terry Looks to Defeat Barack Obama in 2012 Dem Primaries . Sunshine State News . . Retrieved March 6, 2011.
24. Web site: Randall Terry For President Campaign Committee FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303230745/http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/522/11952790522/11952790522.pdf#navpanes=0. March 3, 2016. dead.
25. Web site: Randall Terry for President Campaign Committee FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001501/http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/305/12971267305/12971267305.pdf#navpanes=0. March 4, 2016. dead.
26. On the campaign trail, March 2012. April 4, 2012. Wikinews. May 23, 2012.
27. Web site: Official 2012 Presidential General Election Results . January 17, 2013 . FEC . June 24, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140731191620/http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2012/2012presgeresults.pdf . July 31, 2014 .
28. Web site: Keith Russell Judd: Would-be Presidential candidate sits in a Beaumont prison. July 6, 2011. Beaumont Enterprise. April 6, 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120303113224/http://blog.beaumontenterprise.com/bayou/2011/07/06/keith-russell-judd-would-be-presidential-candidate-sits-in-a-beaumont-prison/. March 3, 2012.
29. Web site: Texas prisoner says he should be on 2012 ballot. Asbury. Kyla. July 6, 2011. West Virginia Record. April 6, 2012.
30. Web site: Texas convict on W.Va. ballot for president. Porterfield. Mannix. March 27, 2012. The Register-Herald. April 6, 2012.
31. Web site: Hail to the chief! Beaumont "resident" on the ballot in West Virginia. March 27, 2012. Beaumont Enterprise. April 6, 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120512021517/http://blog.beaumontenterprise.com/bayou/2012/03/27/hail-to-the-chief-beaumont-resident-on-the-ballot-in-west-virginia/. May 12, 2012.
32. Web site: Meet Keith Judd, the Superhero Inmate Winning Delegates Against Barack Obama. Weigel, David. Slate. May 8, 2012. May 9, 2012. David Weigel.
33. News: Texas inmate wins 41% of vote vs. Obama in West Virginia primary. Little, M.. Los Angeles Times. May 9, 2012. May 9, 2012.
34. News: Keith Judd joins presidential candidates losing delegates they 'won' . Tilove. Jonathan. May 11, 2012. The Times-Picayune. May 24, 2012.
35. Web site: Keith Judd FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013.
36. Web site: Oklahoman among hopefuls to run against President Obama . The Oklahoman . December 7, 2011 . February 15, 2012 . McNutt, Michael.
37. Web site: Election 2012 . Tulsa World . February 15, 2012.
38. Web site: Jim Rogers FEC filing. FEC. June 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303211847/http://images.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/fecimg/?_11030693440+0. March 3, 2016. dead.
39. News: Oklahoma elections: Fifth Democrat added to state's presidential primary. McNutt. Michael. December 9, 2011. The Oklahoman. June 30, 2013.
40. Web site: Obama renomination won't be unanimous . . March 7, 2012 . March 7, 2012 . Dinan, Stephen.
41. Web site: Ed Cowan Biography. Project Vote Smart. June 25, 2013.
42. Lesser known candidates forum. January 1, 2012. Wikinews. May 24, 2012.
43. Web site: New Hampshire Democratic Delegation. The Green Papers. May 24, 2012.
44. Web site: The long, long New Hampshire ballot. .
45. News: Filing period to get on NH primary ballot ends . The Boston Globe . October 28, 2011.
46. News: Simón . Ríos . Lesser-known candidates bring colorful campaigns to St. Anselm . . December 20, 2011 . December 20, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120308183649/http://www.unionleader.com/article/20111220/NEWS0605/712209967 . March 8, 2012 . dead . mdy-all .
47. Web site: John Haywood Biography. Project Vote Smart. June 25, 2013.
48. Web site: John Haywood FEC filing. FEC. March 21, 2020.
49. Web site: Craig Freis Biography. Project Vote Smart. June 25, 2013.
50. Web site: Complaint of Craig Tax Freeze Freis, Candidate for the 2012 Presidential Primary. November 30, 2011. The State of New Hampshire Ballot Law Commission. June 24, 2013.
51. Web site: 2008 Presidential Hopefuls Grouped By Party. The Green Papers. June 28, 2013.
52. Web site: Edward Thomas O'Donnell, Jr. Political Summary. Project Vote Smart. June 26, 2013.
53. Web site: Bob Greene FEC filing. FEC. March 21, 2020.
54. Web site: Robert Jordan FEC filing. FEC. March 21, 2020.
55. Web site: Aldous Tyler Biography. Project Vote Smart. June 28, 2013.
56. Web site: Aldous Tyler FEC filing. FEC. March 21, 2020.
57. Web site: Obama Campaign Appears to Have Forgotten About New Hampshire Primary. Cassidy. Austin. January 5, 2012. Uncovered Politics. June 29, 2013.
58. Web site: Jefe Boss Political Summary. Project Vote Smart. June 28, 2013.
59. Web site: Jeff Boss FEC filing. July 1, 2009. FEC. March 21, 2020.
60. News: The Frenzied Conspiracy Theories of Jeff Boss . Morin. Ric. Vice. June 23, 2013.
61. Web site: Jeff Boss FEC filing. March 28, 2012. FEC. March 21, 2020.
62. Web site: Official 2012 Presidential General Election Results . January 17, 2013 . FEC . June 23, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140731191620/http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2012/2012presgeresults.pdf . July 31, 2014 .
63. Book: Food and Fuel: Solutions for the Future . Andrew Heintzman . 978-0887848261 . 2009-02-15 . 2015-11-12.
64. Web site: Harry Braun FEC filing. August 12, 2011. FEC. March 22, 2020.
65. Web site: Candidate highlights Trig Palin's Down syndrome at soapbox. Jason Clayworth. The Des Moines Register. Aug 19, 2011. March 22, 2020.
66. Web site: Former Democratic presidential challenger says party unwelcoming. The Daily Iowan. November 28, 2011. Melissa Dawkins. March 22, 2020.
67. Web site: Harry Braun FEC filing. November 3, 2011. FEC. March 22, 2020.
68. Web site: Warren Mosler FEC filing. FEC. March 21, 2020.
69. Web site: Another hat in the ring? Financial analyst Warren Mosler considers U.S. Senate run. Altimari. Daniela. February 25, 2010. Courant. 28 May 2011. dead. https://archive.today/20120525203258/http://blogs.courant.com/capitol_watch/2010/02/another-hat-in-the-ring-financ.html. 25 May 2012.
70. Web site: Warren Bruce Mosler Termination Report. Federal Election Commission. 28 May 2011. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220521/http://images.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/fecimg/?_10930465940+0. 3 March 2016.