Georgia elections, 2012
The state of Georgia held elections in 2012. Below are the dates of note:
- Signature filing deadline: May 25, 2012
- Primary date: July 31, 2012
- General election date: November 6, 2012
| On the 2012 ballot | Click here for all November 6, 2012 Election Results | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Senate | 
|
Preview Article | |
| U.S. House (14 seats) | 
| ||
| State Executives (2 down-ballot positions) |
|
Preview Article | |
| State Senate (56 seats) |
|
Preview Article | |
| State House (180 seats) |
| ||
| Ballot measures (3 measure) |
|
Preview Article | |
2012 Elections
For election results in the 50 states, see our November 6, 2012 election results page
Elections by type
U.S. House
Georgia received an additional seat from redistricting.
| Members of the U.S. House from Georgia -- Partisan Breakdown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 5 | 5 | |
| Republican Party | 8 | 9 | |
| Total | 13 | 14 | |
| District | General Election Candidates | Incumbent | 2012 Winner | Partisan Switch? |
| 1st |  Lesli Rae Messinger Jack Kingston |
Jack Kingston | Jack Kingston |
No |
| 2nd | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. John House |
Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. |
No |
| 3rd | Lynn A. Westmoreland |
Lynn A. Westmoreland | Lynn A. Westmoreland |
No |
| 4th | Henry C. Johnson, Jr. Chris Vaughn |
Henry C. Johnson, Jr. | Henry C. Johnson, Jr. |
No |
| 5th | John Lewis Howard Stopeck |
John Lewis | John Lewis |
No |
| 6th | Jeff Kazanow Tom Price |
Tom Price | Tom Price |
No |
| 7th | Steve Reilly Rob Woodall |
Rob Woodall | Rob Woodall |
No |
| 8th | Austin Scott |
Austin Scott | Austin Scott |
no |
| 9th | Jody Cooley Doug Collins |
Tom Graves | Doug Collins |
No |
| 10th | Paul Broun |
Paul Broun | Paul Broun |
No |
| 11th | Patrick Thompson Phil Gingrey |
Phil Gingrey | Phil Gingrey |
No |
| 12th | John Barrow Lee Anderson |
John Barrow | John Barrow |
No |
| 13th | David Scott S. Malik |
David Scott | David Scott |
No |
| 14th | Daniel Grant Tom Graves |
K.A. | Tom Graves |
K.A. |
State Executives
There were two state executive positions up for election. Voters elected a total of two members to the Georgia Public Service Commission.
| Georgia Public Service Commission District 3 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Chuck Eaton Incumbent |
52.1% | 1,858,663 | |
| Democratic | Stephen Oppenheimer | 43.1% | 1,537,923 | |
| Libertarian | Brad Ploeger | 4.8% | 171,138 | |
| Total Votes | 3,567,724 | |||
| Election results via Georgia Secretary of State | ||||
| Georgia Public Service Commission District 5 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Stan Wise Incumbent |
65.8% | 2,110,146 | |
| Libertarian | David Staples | 34.2% | 1,095,115 | |
| Total Votes | 3,205,261 | |||
| Election results via Georgia Secretary of State | ||||
State Senate
- See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2012
Heading into the election, Republicans maintained partisan control in the state senate.
| Georgia State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 20 | 18 | |
| Republican Party | 36 | 38 | |
| Total | 56 | 56 | |
State House
Heading into the election, Republicans maintained partisan control in the state house.
| Georgia House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 63 | 60 | |
| Republican Party | 114 | 119 | |
| Independent | 1 | 1 | |
| Vacancy | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 180 | 180 | |
Ballot measures
- See also: Georgia 2012 ballot measures
July 31:
| Typ | Titel | Subject | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRSS | Referendum 1 | Taxes | Would increase the sales tax in regions that pass the referendum by one-cent. | [1]
|
November 6:
| Typ | Titel | Subject | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRCA | Amendment 1 | Bildung | Regarding the establishment of public charter schools. |
|
| LRCA | Amendment 2 | Admin of gov't | Gives the State Properties Commission the authority to enter into multiyear lease agreements. |
|
Eligibility to Vote
Primary election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 primary elections
Georgia was one of 16 states to use an open primary system. When runoff elections are used, voters must vote in same party's runoff election as they voted for in the first round election. Voters had to register to vote by July 2, 2012 to vote in the primary election.[2] (Information about registering to vote)
General election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 general elections
The deadline to register to vote was 28 days prior to the election day, which in 2012 was October 9.[3]
Note: Some states had a voter registration deadline 30 days prior to the election but because this may have falled on a weekend and Columbus Day was on Monday, October 8th, some states extended the deadline to October 9, 2012.
- Voter ID info
- Residency requirements: A legal resident of Georgia and of the county[4]
- Same-day registration: None
Voting absentee
- See also: Absentee Voting
All voters are eligible to vote absentee/by-mail in Georgia. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting absentee. The ballot application deadline is 11 days before Election Day. A completed ballot must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day.[5]
Voting early
- See also: Early voting
Georgia is one of 34 states that permits early voting with no specific restrictions as to who can vote early. Early voting is held Monday through Friday in the week immediately preceding the election.[6]
Issues
2012
Department of Justice sues over voting deadlines
On June 29, 2012, the Department of Justice filed a suit in federal court against the state of Georgia, alleging that service members, their family members and overseas civilian voters wouldn’t have time to vote by absentee ballot in runoff elections, if they were required.[7] According to the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (dead link) (UOCAVA), states are required to transmit all validly requested ballots to UOCAVA voters at least 45 days before an election, unless a hardship exemption is obtained, for which Georgia failed to file.[7] However, this conflicted with the timeline for runoff elections, in which the primary runoff, by law, had to be held 21 days after the regular or special primary election. But, if a runoff was required after the Nov. 6 general election, it would be held 28 days later, on December 4, which also didn't provide for the required 45 days.[7]
As part of the lawsuit, the Department of Justice asked Georgia to "extend the ballot receipt deadline to Aug. 31 for these voters; send ballots by express delivery as soon as possible before the Aug. 21 runoff election; and inform UOCAVA voters no later than July 7 of their right to request a state write-in absentee ballot or their official absentee ballot for any runoff election by downloading it from the Internet, by email or by fax."[7]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Though the measure was statewide it was voted on by each 12 regions separately, resulting in the referendum being passed in 3 and defeated in 9
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Election Dates," accessed April 25, 2012
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Election Dates" accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Voter Eligibility" accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ Georgia.gov, "Vote by Absentee Ballot," accessed August 12, 2024
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Voting Information," accessed December 18, 2013
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Marine Corps Times, "Justice sues Georgia over voting deadlines" accessed July 24, 2012
