2012 United States presidential election in Oregon explained

See main article: 2012 United States presidential election.

Election Name:2012 United States presidential election in Oregon
Country:Oregon
Type:presidential
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:2008 United States presidential election in Oregon
Previous Year:2008
Election Date:November 6, 2012
Next Election:2016 United States presidential election in Oregon
Next Year:2016
Image1:President Barack Obama, 2012 portrait crop.jpg
Nominee1:Barack Obama
Party1:Democratic Party (United States)
Home State1:Illinois
Running Mate1:Joe Biden
Electoral Vote1:7
Popular Vote1:970,488
Percentage1:54.24%
Nominee2:Mitt Romney
Party2:Republican Party (United States)
Home State2:Massachusetts
Running Mate2:Paul Ryan
Electoral Vote2:0
Popular Vote2:754,175
Percentage2:42.15%
President
Before Election:Barack Obama
Before Party:Democratic Party (United States)
After Election:Barack Obama
After Party:Democratic Party (United States)

The 2012 United States presidential election in Oregon took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the 2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Oregon voters chose seven electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Representative Paul Ryan.

Obama carried Oregon with 54.24% of the vote to Romney's 42.15%, a Democratic victory margin of 12.09%. The Democrats have won the state in every presidential election since 1988, and the Republicans would never seriously contest the state after the 2004 election. Though Romney won a majority of counties, his best performances were in the most sparsely populated regions of the state. Obama's win came from strong support in the densely populated northwestern region of the state, home to Oregon's largest metropolitan areas. Obama won over 75% of the vote in Multnomah County, containing Portland, as well as its surrounding counties, enough to deliver the state to the Democrats by a strong margin. However, the Republican Party managed to improve on their 2008 loss of 16.35%[1] and flipped the counties of Jackson (home to Medford), Marion (home to Salem), and Wasco back into the Republican column.

Obama was the first Democrat since 1948 to win without Wasco County. As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the last time where Columbia County and Tillamook County backed the Democratic candidate.

Primary elections

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary was held on May 15, 2012. Barack Obama ran unopposed for the nomination.

Republican primary

Election Name:2012 Oregon Republican presidential primary
Country:Oregon
Type:presidential
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:2008 Oregon Republican presidential primary
Previous Year:2008
Next Election:2016 Oregon Republican presidential primary
Next Year:2016
Image1:Mitt_Romney_by_Gage_Skidmore_6_cropped.jpg
Candidate1:Mitt Romney
Color1:ff6600
Home State1:Massachusetts
Delegate Count1:18
Popular Vote1:204,176
Percentage1:70.91%
Candidate2:Ron Paul
Color2:ffcc00
Home State2:Texas
Delegate Count2:3
Popular Vote2:36,810
Percentage2:12.78%
Candidate4:Rick Santorum
Color4:008000
Home State4:Pennsylvania
Image4:Rick Santorum by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Delegate Count4:3
Popular Vote4:27,042
Percentage4:9.39%
Image5:Newt Gingrich by Gage Skidmore 3 (cropped).jpg
Candidate5:Newt Gingrich
Color5:800080
Home State5:Georgia
Delegate Count5:1
Popular Vote5:15,451
Percentage5:5.37%
Map Size:250px

The Republican primary was held on May 15, 2012.[2] [3] The only two candidates still in the race were Mitt Romney and U.S. Representative from Texas, Ron Paul. In addition, former Senator from Pennsylvania Rick Santorum and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich had withdrawn prior to the election, but their names still appeared on the Oregon ballot.

In order to participate in the primary, voters were required to register to vote by April 24, 2012.[4] A closed primary was used to elect the presidential, legislative, and local partisan offices. A semi-closed primary, which allowed non-affiliated voters to participate, was used to elect the Attorney General, Secretary of State and Treasurer.[5]

General election

By county

CountyBarack Obama
Democratic
Mitt Romney
Republican
Various candidates
Other parties
MarginTotal votes cast
%%%%
Baker2,36928.04%5,70267.50%3774.46%-3,333-39.46%8,448
Benton27,77662.00%14,99133.46%2,0354.54%12,78528.54%44,802
Clackamas95,49350.44%88,59246.79%5,2472.77%6,9013.65%189,332
Clatsop9,86155.34%7,24940.68%7083.98%2,61214.66%17,818
Columbia12,00450.28%10,77245.12%1,0994.60%1,2325.16%23,875
Coos12,84544.78%14,67351.15%1,1684.07%-1,828-6.37%28,686
Crook3,10430.34%6,79066.37%3363.29%-3,686-36.03%10,230
Curry4,62539.60%6,59856.50%4553.90%-1,973-16.90%11,678
Deschutes36,96145.13%42,46351.85%2,4763.02%-5,502-6.72%81,900
Douglas17,14534.43%30,77661.80%1,8823.77%-13,631-27.37%49,803
Gilliam37134.97%63960.23%514.80%-268-25.26%1,061
Grant85321.81%2,92674.81%1323.38%-2,073-53.00%3,911
Harney83223.22%2,60772.76%1444.02%-1,775-49.54%3,583
Hood River6,05861.58%3,42934.85%3513.57%2,62926.73%9,838
Jackson44,46845.78%49,02050.47%3,6393.75%-4,552-4.69%97,127
Jefferson3,30140.38%4,64256.78%2322.84%-1,341-16.40%8,175
Josephine14,95337.16%23,67358.83%1,6124.01%-8,720-21.67%40,238
Klamath8,30229.49%18,89867.13%9523.38%-10,596-37.64%28,152
Lake77020.75%2,80875.69%1323.56%-2,038-54.94%3,710
Lane102,65259.73%62,50936.37%6,6893.90%40,14323.36%171,850
Lincoln13,40158.31%8,68637.79%8973.90%4,71520.52%22,984
Linn20,37839.63%28,94456.28%2,1044.09%-8,566-16.65%51,426
Malheur2,75927.71%6,85168.81%3463.48%-4,092-41.10%9,956
Marion56,37646.83%60,19050.00%3,8103.17%-3,814-3.17%120,376
Morrow1,20230.96%2,53265.22%1483.82%-1,330-34.26%3,882
Multnomah274,88775.37%75,30220.65%14,5333.98%199,58554.72%364,722
Polk16,29246.21%17,81950.54%1,1463.25%-1,527-4.33%35,257
Sherman31931.09%67866.08%292.83%-359-34.99%1,026
Tillamook6,29350.27%5,68445.40%5424.33%6094.87%12,519
Umatilla8,58434.38%15,49962.07%8863.55%-6,915-27.69%24,969
Union3,97332.92%7,63663.26%4613.82%-3,663-30.34%12,070
Wallowa1,25329.80%2,80466.68%1483.52%-1,551-36.88%4,205
Wasco5,21147.93%5,22948.09%4333.98%-18-0.16%10,873
Washington135,29157.08%93,97439.65%7,7583.27%41,31717.43%237,023
Wheeler26631.00%54563.52%475.48%-279-32.52%858
Yamhill19,26044.89%22,04551.38%1,6023.73%-2,785-6.49%42,907
Total970,48854.24%754,17542.15%64,6073.61%216,31312.09%1,789,270

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Results by congressional districts

Obama won 4 of 5 congressional districts.[6]

DistrictObamaRomneyRepresentative
57.28%40.01%Suzanne Bonamici
40.46%56.83%Greg Walden
72.03%24.68%
51.74%44.98%Peter DeFazio
50.49%47.11%Kurt Schrader

See also

External links

for Oregon

major state elections in chronological order

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Oregon - Election Results 2008 - The New York Times. 2020-11-09. www.nytimes.com.
  2. News: Primary and Caucus Printable Calendar. CNN. January 12, 2012.
  3. News: Presidential Primary Dates. Federal Election Commission. January 23, 2012.
  4. Web site: Oregon Primary Two Months Away . Mickler . Lauren . March 6, 2012 . KEZI 9 News . Eugene, OR .
  5. News: Oregon Republican Party opens three statewide primaries to non-affiliated voters . Mapes . Jeff . . February 6, 2012.
  6. Web site: Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts. Daily Kos. 11 August 2020.