4,822,330 1,758,702 Start date November 6, 2012 | 72.2% 26.3% | |
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Turnout 53.2% (voting eligible) Winner Kirsten Gillibrand | ||
The 2012 United States Senate election in New York took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the U.S. presidential election as well as other elections to the United States Senate and House of Representatives as well as various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand won re-election to her first full term. Gillibrand was opposed in the general election by Wendy Long (who ran on the Republican and Conservative Party lines) and by three minor party candidates. Gillibrand was re-elected with 72% of the vote, by a margin of 46%, the highest margin for any statewide candidate in New York. Gillibrand performed 9 points better than President Barack Obama did in the presidential race in New York. She carried 60 out of 62 counties statewide. There was one debate held between Senator Gillibrand and Ms Long in October 2012 where they debated various issues such as the economy, abortion rights, the debt and deficit, foreign policy and jobs. Gillibrand's vote total was the highest since President Lyndon B. Johnson's landslide victory in New York in 1964 and was surpassed by her senior colleague Chuck Schumer in 2016 when he won his fourth term, also defeating Wendy Long, in a similar landslide, also with a sweeping statewide cakewalk.
Contents
Background
Governor David Paterson appointed then-U.S. Representative Kirsten Gillibrand to serve as U.S. Senator from New York until the 2010 special election, succeeding former U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton, who resigned to serve as U.S. Secretary of State in the Obama administration. Gillibrand won the special election in 2010 with 62.95% of the vote over former U.S. Representative Joseph DioGuardi.
Candidates
Gillibrand has also been endorsed by the Independence Party of New York and the Working Families Party, and also appeared on the ballot lines of both of those parties in the general election.
Declared
The 2012 New York State Republican Convention took place on March 16, 2012. Candidates Wendy Long, George Maragos, and Congressman Bob Turner each reached the threshold of 25% of the weighted vote necessary to qualify for the June 26 primary ballot; however, none of the candidates achieved a majority. Long prevailed by a sizeable margin in the June 26 Republican primary, receiving 50.9% of the vote; Turner received 35.6% and Maragos 13.5%.
Long was designated as the nominee for the Conservative Party of New York State, and appeared on its ballot line in the general election as well as the Republican Party line.
Withdrew
Endorsements
Source: Update for US Senate Election NY 2012: http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/elections/2012/General/USSenator_07292013.pdf
Candidates
Debates
Oct. 17, 2012 Saratoga Springs, NY
Results
According to preliminary results, Gillibrand won re-election by a landslide of over 70% of the vote on November 6, 2012.