The 2012 United States Senate election in California took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the

2012 U.S. presidential election The 2012 United States presidential election was the 57th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. Incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, incumbent Vice President Joe Biden, were re-el ...

as well as other elections to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

and

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

and various state and local elections. The primary election on June 5 took place under California's new blanket primary law, where all candidates appear on the same ballot, regardless of party. In the primary, voters voted for any candidate listed, or write-in any other candidate. The top two finishers—regardless of party—advanced to the general election in November, even if a candidate managed to receive a majority of the votes cast in the June primary. In the primary, less than 15% of the total 2010 census population voted. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator

Dianne Feinstein Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein ( ; born Dianne Emiel Goldman; June 22, 1933) is an American politician who serves as the senior United States senator from California, a seat she has held since 1992. A member of the Democratic Party, she was ...

announced her intention to run for a fourth full term in April 2011 and finished first in the blanket primary with 49.5% of the vote. The second-place finisher was Republican candidate and autism activist Elizabeth Emken, who won 12.7% of the vote. Feinstein ultimately defeated Emken in the general election on November 6, winning 62.5% of the vote to Emken's 37.5%. Feinstein's total of 7.86 million popular votes is the most ever received by a candidate for U.S. Senate in American history. For a full decade, Emken was the only Republican candidate to have advanced to a general U.S. Senate election in California, as only Democratic candidates advanced to the general election in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

and

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

; however, this streak was broken in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

Primary

Candidates

Democratic Party

, incumbent U.S. senator * Colleen Shea Fernald * David Levitt, computer scientist and engineer * Nak Shah, environmental health consultant * Diane Stewart, businesswoman * Mike Strimling, attorney and former U.S. Peace Corps legal adviser

Republican Party

* John Boruff, businessman * Oscar Alejandro Braun, businessman and rancher * Greg Conlon, businessman and CPA * Elizabeth Emken, candidate for the 11th congressional district in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

* Rogelio Gloria, U.S. Naval Officer * Dan Hughes, businessman * Dennis Jackson * Dirk Konopik, former congressional aide * Donald Krampe * Robert Lauten * Al Ramirez, businessman *

Nachum Shifren Rabbi Nachum Shifren (born 1951), also known as the "Surfing Rabbi," is an Orthodox Lubavitcher Chassidic rabbi and accomplished surfer. Active in far-right nationalist politics, Shifren was the candidate in 2010 of the California Republican Pa ...

, rabbi and state senate candidate in

Orly Taitz Orly Taitz ( he, אורלי טייץ; born August 30, 1960) is an Israeli-American political conspiracy theorist and political candidate. A dentist, lawyer, and former real estate agent, Taitz was a figure in the "birther" movement, which prom ...

, dentist,

Birther movement During Barack Obama's campaign for president in 2008, throughout his presidency and afterwards, there was extensive news coverage of Obama's religious preference, birthplace, and of the individuals questioning his religious belief and citi ...

activist and candidate for California Secretary of State in 2010 * Rick Williams, business attorney

Libertarian

* Gail Lightfoot, retired nurse

Peace and Freedom

* Kabiruddin Karim Ali, businessman * Marsha Feinland, retired teacher

American Independent

* Don J. Grundmann, chiropractor Despire Don J. Grumann running, The American Independent Party gave their party endorsement to Republican Robert Lauten.

Polling

Results

Election contest

In July 2012, Taitz sued to block the certification of the primary election results, alleging "rampant election fraud", but her suit was denied.

General election

Fundraising

Top contributors

Top industries

Candidates

(D), incumbent U.S. Senator * Elizabeth Emken (R), former Vice President of Autism Speaks

Debates

No debates were scheduled. Senator Feinstein decided to focus on her own campaign rather than debate her challenger.

Predictions

Polling

Results

Results by county

References

External links

Elections
at

Secretary of State of California The secretary of state of California is the chief clerk of the U.S. state of California, overseeing a department of 500 people. The secretary of state is elected for four year terms, like the state's other constitutional officers; the officeh ...

Campaign contributions
at

OpenSecrets.org OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP). ...

Outside spending
at the

Sunlight Foundation The Sunlight Foundation was an American 501(c)(3) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocated for open government. The organization was founded in April 2006 with the goal of increasing transparency and accountability in the United States ...

Candidate issue positions
at On the Issues ;Official campaign sites (Archived)
Elizabeth Emken for Senate

Dianne Feinstein for Senate
{{California elections

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 ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Primary

Candidates

Democratic Party

Republican Party

Libertarian

Peace and Freedom

American Independent

Polling

Results

Election contest

General election

Fundraising

Top contributors

Top industries

Candidates

Debates

Predictions

Polling

Results

Results by county

See also

References

External links