The 2012 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2012, to elect the Governor of Montana. Incumbent

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Governor Brian Schweitzer was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term.

Montana Attorney General The Montana Department of Justice is a state law enforcement agency of Montana. The Department is equivalent to the State Bureau of Investigation in other states. The Montana State attorney general, Attorney General, currently Republican Austin ...

Steve Bullock Steve, Steven, or Stephen Bullock may refer to: *Steve Bullock (British politician) (born 1953), first directly elected mayor of the London Borough of Lewisham *Steve Bullock (American politician) (born 1966), 24th Governor of Montana (2013–2021) ...

won the Democratic primary with 87% of the vote and former U.S. Representative Rick Hill won the Republican primary with 34% of the vote. In the general election, Bullock won by 7,571 votes, taking 48.9% of the vote to Hill's 47.3%. With a margin of 1.6%, this election was the second-closest race of the 2012 gubernatorial election cycle, behind only the election in Puerto Rico. Due to the close margin, media outlets did not call the race for Bullock until the next day.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

:*Running mate: John Walsh, Brigadier general and former adjutant general in the Montana National Guard * Heather Margolis, Montana representative for community service organization ServeNext :*Running mate: Steve Nelsen, founder of the

Montana Conservation Corps The Montana Conservation Corps (MCC) is a young adult voluntary development program modeled after the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s, using conservation projects to foster citizenship and personal growth in its members. The MCC operate ...

Withdrew

Larry Jent Larry Jent (born December 20, 1951) is a politician and a former Democratic member of the Montana Legislature. He served in the Montana House of Representatives from 2001 to 2007, and served in the Montana Senate from 2007 to 2015. Early life, ...

, state senator

Declined

John Bohlinger John Bohlinger, Jr. (born April 21, 1936) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 33rd Lieutenant Governor of Montana from 2005 to 2013. He ran for the office as a Republican on a bipartisan ticket headed by Democratic gu ...

, Lieutenant Governor of Montana * Carl Borgquist, president of Grasslands Renewable Energy of Bozeman *

Dave Wanzenried David Wanzenried is a state senator representing the 49th district of Montana, representing parts of the city of Missoula and Missoula County, since 2006. He is a member of the Democratic party. Previously, he had been elected to the state House ...

, state senator * Pat Williams, former U.S. Representative

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

* Bob Fanning, retired businessman :*Running mate: Joel Boniek, former state representative :*''Former running mate:'' Chuck Baldwin, pastor and Constitution Party nominee for president in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

(dropped out February 2012) * Rick Hill, former U.S. Representative :*Running mate:

Jon Sonju Jon Sonju (born December 26, 1975) is a former member of the Montana Senate. He is a Republican from Senate District 4, representing Kalispell, Montana, elected in 2011. He served as a State Senator until 2015. He previously served in the Monta ...

, state senator * Neil Livingstone, terrorism and national security analyst :*Running mate: Ryan Zinke, state senator * Jim Lynch, former Montana Department of Transportation director :*Running mate: Al Olszewski, orthopedic surgeon and

Carroll College Carroll College is a private Catholic college in Helena, Montana. The college has 21 buildings on a 63-acre campus, has over 35 academic majors, participates in 15 NAIA athletic sports, and is home to All Saints Chapel. The college motto, in L ...

Trustee * Ken Miller, former state senator and former chairman of the Montana Republican Party :*Running mate: Bill Gallagher, Public Service Commissioner * Jim O'Hara,

Chouteau County Chouteau County is a county located in the North-Central region of the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,895. Its county seat is Fort Benton. The county was established in 1865 as one of the original nine count ...

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

:*Running mate: Scott Swingley, private investigator and former trooper in the Montana Highway Patrol *

Corey Stapleton Corey Stapleton (born September 17, 1967) is an American politician and musician who served as the Secretary of State of Montana from 2017 to 2021. A Republican, he served as a member of the Montana State Senate from 2001 to 2009. In 2020, Stapl ...

, former state senator :*Running mate: Bob Keenan, former President of the

Montana Senate The Montana Senate is the upper house of the Montana Legislature, the state legislative branch of the U.S. state of Montana. The body is composed of 50 senators elected for four years. Composition of the Senate :''67th Legislature – 2021–202 ...

Withdrew

Jeff Essmann Jeff Essmann (born June 29, 1952) is an American politician and a Republican former member of the Montana Senate. Essmann was appointed to the Montana Senate in 2005 to represent Senate District 28. He was subsequently elected in 2006, and reele ...

, Majority Leader of the

* Drew Turiano, real estate investor

Declined

* Denny Rehberg, U.S. Representative ( ran for the U.S. Senate)

Polling

Results

2012 Montana gubernatorial Republican primary county map

General election

Candidates

(D), Montana Attorney General :*Running mate: John Walsh, Brigadier general and former adjutant general in the Montana National Guard * Rick Hill (R), former U.S. Representative :*Running mate:

, state senator * Ron Vandevender (Libertarian), businessman :*Running mate: Marc Mulcahy

Debate

Complete video of debate

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...

, October 10, 2012

Predictions

Polling

;Aggregate polls With Bohlinger With Bullock With Jent With Wanzenried

Results

Notes

References

External links

Elections and Government – Montana Secretary of State
;Official campaign websites (Archived)
Steve Bullock for Governor

Rick Hill for Governor

Ron Vandevender for Governor
{{2012 United States elections Montana Governor

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Steve Bullock (American politician)