The 2012 United States Senate election in Virginia took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the
2012 U.S. presidential election 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. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator
Jim Webb
James Henry Webb Jr. (born February 9, 1946) is an American politician and author. He has served as a United States senator from Virginia, Secretary of the Navy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, Counsel for the United States ...
retired instead of running for reelection to a second term, and former Democratic
Governor of Virginia
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
Tim Kaine
Timothy Michael Kaine (; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 38th lieutenant governor of Virgi ...
won the open seat over Republican former Senator and Governor
George Allen George Allen may refer to:
Politics and law
* George E. Allen (1896–1973), American political operative and one-time head coach of the Cumberland University football team
* George Allen (Australian politician) (1800–1877), Mayor of Sydney and ...
.
Kaine was unopposed for the Democratic nomination, and the Republicans nominated Allen through a primary on June 12, 2012. Allen had previously held this seat for one term before narrowly losing reelection to Webb in
2006.
Republican primary
In Virginia, parties have the option of whether to hold a primary or to nominate their candidate through a party convention. In November 2010, the Virginia GOP announced that it had chosen to hold a primary.
Candidates
Declared
*
George Allen George Allen may refer to:
Politics and law
* George E. Allen (1896–1973), American political operative and one-time head coach of the Cumberland University football team
* George Allen (Australian politician) (1800–1877), Mayor of Sydney and ...
, former
U.S. Senator and former
Governor of Virginia
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
*
E. W. Jackson, minister and conservative activist
*
Bob Marshall,
State Delegate and candidate 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; ...
* Jamie Radtke, conservative activist
Withdrawn
* Tim Donner, founder of Horizons Television and LibertyNation.com
* David McCormick, attorney
Declined
*
Liz Cheney, former
*
Ken Cuccinelli
Kenneth Thomas Cuccinelli II ( ; born July 30, 1968) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security from 2019 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, h ...
,
Virginia Attorney General
*
Tom Davis, former U.S. Representative
*
Corey Stewart,
Prince William County
Prince William County is located on the Potomac River in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 482,204, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manassas ...
Board of Supervisors Chairman
Debates
Three debates between Republican candidates were announced before the primary on June 12, 2012. The debates took place in Richmond, Northern Virginia, and Hampton Roads.
Polling
Endorsements
Results
General election
Candidates
*
George Allen George Allen may refer to:
Politics and law
* George E. Allen (1896–1973), American political operative and one-time head coach of the Cumberland University football team
* George Allen (Australian politician) (1800–1877), Mayor of Sydney and ...
(Republican), former
U.S. Senator and former
Governor of Virginia
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
*
Tim Kaine
Timothy Michael Kaine (; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 38th lieutenant governor of Virgi ...
(Democrat), former
Governor of Virginia
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
and former
Democratic National Committee chairman
Only Allen and Kaine qualified for the ballot.
Debates
David Gregory moderated a debate between Kaine and Allen on September 20, 2012. Topics included partisan gridlock in Washington policy making, job creation, tax policy, and Middle East unrest.
;External links
Complete video of debate September 20, 2012 -
C-SPANComplete video of debate October 8, 2012 -
C-SPANComplete video of debate October 18, 2012 -
C-SPAN
Campaign
Once incumbent U.S. Senator Jim Webb decided to retire, many Democratic candidates were speculated. These included U.S. Congressmen
Rick Boucher
Frederick Carlyle Boucher (; born August 1, 1946) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for from 1983 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He was defeated in his bid for a 15th term by Republican Morgan Griff ...
,
Gerry Connolly
Gerald Edward Connolly (born March 30, 1950) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Virginia's 11th congressional district, first elected in 2008. The district is anchored in Fairfax County, an affluent suburban coun ...
,
Glenn Nye
Glenn Carlyle Nye III (born September 9, 1974) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for from 2009 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He was defeated in his attempt to attain re-election on November 2, 2010. ...
,
Tom Perriello
Thomas Stuart Price Perriello (born October 9, 1974) is an American attorney, diplomat, and politician. As of January 2021, Perriello is the executive director for U.S. Programs at the Open Society Foundations.
Perriello ran for in the United S ...
and
Bobby Scott. However, they all declined and encouraged Kaine to run for the seat, believing he would be by far the most electable candidate. Courtney Lynch, former Marine Corps Officer and Fairfax business consultant
and Julien Modica, former CEO of the Brain Trauma Recovery & Policy Institute,
[ eventually withdrew from the election, allowing Kaine to be unopposed in the Democratic primary.
]
Fundraising
Top contributors
Top industries
Independent expenditures
In early October 2012, Crossroads GPS
American Crossroads is a US Super PAC that raises funds from donors to advocate for certain candidates of the Republican Party. It has pioneered many of the new methods of fundraising opened up by the Supreme Court's ruling in ''Citizens United ...
announced it would launch a $16 million advertising buy in national races, of which four were this and three other Senate elections.
Predictions
Polling
;Democratic primary
;General election
;with Rick Boucher
;with Tom Perriello
;with Bobby Scott
;with Jim Webb
Results
See also
* Hank the Cat
* 2012 United States Senate elections
*
References
External links
Virginia State Board of Elections
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 Sunlight Foundation
Candidate issue positions
at On the Issues
;Official campaign websites
George Allen for U.S. Senate
Tim Kaine for U.S. Senate
{{Tim Kaine
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 gat ...
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
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 ...
Tim Kaine