New York state elections, 2012
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The 2012 New York state elections took place on November 6, 2012. These elections included the 2012 presidential election, an election to one U.S. Senate seat, and elections to all 27 New York congressional seats, all 63 seats in the New York State Senate, and all 150 seats in the New York State Assembly. Incumbent Democratic President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney in New York and was re-elected. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from New York since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as member of the U.S. House of ...
was re-elected as well. In New York's elections to the U.S. House of Representatives, Democrats won 21 seats and Republicans won six. The Republican Party lost its majority in the New York State Senate, as Democratic candidates won 33 of 63 seats; following the elections, however, Senate Republicans retained control of the State Senate through alliances with dissident Democrats. Democrats maintained control of the New York State Assembly.


Presidential election

New York had 29 electoral votes at stake. As is the case with most states, the electors were winner-takes-all. The candidates that achieved ballot access were as follows, in order of their position on the ballot: *
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
:
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
/ Joe Biden * Republican Party: Mitt Romney / Paul Ryan *
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
: Mitt Romney / Paul Ryan *
Working Families Party The Working Families Party (WFP) is a minor political party in the United States, founded in New York in 1998. There are active chapters in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Ne ...
: Barack Obama / Joe Biden *''The Independence Party of New York, despite having automatic ballot access, will not field candidates.'' *
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...
:
Jill Stein Jill Ellen Stein (born May 14, 1950) is an American physician, activist, and former political candidate. She was the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States in the 2012 and 2016 elections and the Green-Rainbow Party's candidat ...
/ Cheri Honkala *
Party for Socialism and Liberation The Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) is a communist party in the United States, established in 2004. Its members are active in a wide range of movements including the labor, anti-war, immigrants' rights, women's rights, and anti-police ...
:
Peta Lindsay Peta Lindsay (born 1984) is an American anti-war activist. She was a presidential nominee of the Party for Socialism and Liberation in the 2012 U.S. presidential election. Early life and education Lindsay was born in Virginia and grew up in Phi ...
/ Yari Osorio *
Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...
:
Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman, author, and politician. He served as the 29th governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party. He was the Libertarian Party nominee for Presid ...
/ James P. Gray * Constitution Party:
Virgil Goode Virgil Hamlin Goode Jr. (born October 17, 1946) is an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 5th congressional district of Virginia between 1997 and 2009. He was initially a Democrat, but b ...
/ Jim Clymer President Obama won New York by a 62.6%-36% margin over Gov. Mitt Romney.


United States Senate

Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from New York since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as member of the U.S. House of ...
was appointed to the seat by Governor
David Paterson David Alexander Paterson (born May 20, 1954) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 55th governor of New York, succeeding Eliot Spitzer and serving out nearly three years of Spitzer's term from March 2008 to December 2010. ...
in 2009, and was officially elected in a
special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
on November 2, 2010. Senator Gillibrand sought re-election for a full term against Republican attorney
Wendy E. Long Wendy Elizabeth Long (née Stone; born June 21, 1960) is an American attorney from New Hampshire. A member of the Republican Party, Long was the Republican and Conservative parties’ nominee for U.S. Senate in New York in 2012 and 2016, losing ...
, who defeated Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos and U.S. Representative Bob Turner in a primary election for the Republican Party nomination. Sen. Gillibrand was re-elected by a margin of 71.9%-26.7% over Long.


United States House of Representatives

After a loss of two seats following the
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...
, the New York congressional delegation was reduced from twenty-nine to twenty-seven
U.S. Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
. The two existing districts that were eliminated were District 9, held by Republican Rep. Bob Turner, and District 22, held by retiring Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey. Democratic Reps.
Gary Ackerman Gary Leonard Ackerman (born November 19, 1942) is an American retired politician and former U.S. Representative from New York, serving from 1983 to 2013. He is a member of the Democratic Party. On March 15, 2012, Ackerman announced that he wou ...
and Democratic
Maurice Hinchey Maurice Dunlea Hinchey (October 27, 1938 – November 22, 2017) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York and was a member of the Democratic Party. He retired at the end of his term in January 2013 after 20 ...
, as well as freshman
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Bob Turner, did not seek re-election to the House of Representatives. On Election Day, the Democratic Party regained two seats previously held by Republicans, while the Republican Party regained one seat previously held by a Democrat. In total, 21 Democrats and six Republicans prevailed.


State Legislature


State Senate

Following the 2010 census, the Senate was redistricted effective in January 2013. The newly redistricted Senate was expanded from 62 to 63 seats. On June 24, 2011, same-sex marriage became legal in New York upon the enactment of the Marriage Equality Act. The passage of the Marriage Equality Act had an impact upon the 2012 State Senate elections, as three Republican senators who voted for the bill faced primary challenges and the Conservative Party of New York withdrew support for any candidate who had voted for the bill. (In New York, which allows fusion voting, Republican candidates are often endorsed by the Conservative Party.) Republican Senators Roy McDonald,
James Alesi James S. "Jim" Alesi (born 1948) is a retired politician who served as New York State Senator for the 55th district, representing parts of Monroe County from 1997 to 2012. A Republican, Alesi previously served in the Monroe County Legislature ...
,
Mark Grisanti Mark John Grisanti (born October 21, 1964) is an American lawyer, politician, and judge from New York. After being elected to the New York State Senate in District 60 as a Republican in 2010, Grisanti took office as a State Senator on January ...
, and Stephen Saland each voted in favor of the Marriage Equality Act. Carl Paladino, the 2010 Republican gubernatorial nominee, announced he would financially back primary candidates against Grisanti and Saland. Sen. Alesi opted to retire instead of facing a potential primary challenge; Sen. McDonald lost a Republican primary to Saratoga County Clerk Kathy Marchione; and Sen. Saland won his Republican primary, but lost the general election to Democrat Terry Gipson by a margin of approximately 2,000 votes after his primary challenger, Neil Di Carlo, remained on the ballot on the Conservative line and acted as a spoiler. Of the four Republican state senators who voted for the Marriage Equality Act in 2011, only Sen. Grisanti was re-elected in 2012. The Conservative Party endorsed former county legislator Charles Swanick (a registered Democrat), while Carl Paladino and local Tea Party activists endorsed Republican Kevin Stocker in a primary contest against Grisanti. The Democrats nominated Hamburg Attorney Michael Amodeo, who faced a primary challenge from Swanick as well as former Senator Al Coppola. Additionally, Kenmore Mayor Patrick Mang was endorsed by the Working Families Party. Amodeo and Grisanti won their respective primaries, setting up a three-way contest between Amodeo, Grisanti, and Swanick in November. Grisanti prevailed. Democrats also gained seats in Senate Districts 17 (where Democrat
Simcha Felder Simcha Felder (born December 30, 1958) is an American politician from Borough Park, Brooklyn. He represents the 17th district of the New York State Senate. Felder has been elected to multiple offices as a Democrat, but is known for having cauc ...
defeated Republican incumbent David Storobin) and 55 (where Ted O'Brien defeated Sean Hanna).Vielkind, Jimm
"It's Tkaczyk by just 18 votes,"
Times Union, January 18, 2013, Retrieved January 19, 2013
In Senate District 46—a new district that was created through the redistricting process following the 2010 census—the Republican candidate who was sworn in as the victor was later found, following a recount, to have lost the election. Republican
George Amedore George A. Amedore Jr. (born April 2, 1969) is an American homebuilder, businessman, and Republican Party (United States), Republican politician. Amedore formerly represented the New York's 46th State Senate district, 46th district in the New Yor ...
was sworn in to the State Senate following the election, but a recount revealed that Democrat
Cecilia Tkaczyk Cecilia F. Tkaczyk (born December 18, 1961) is an American politician who served as a member of the New York State Senate for the New York's 46th State Senate district, 46th district. She was elected to the Senate as a member of the Democratic ...
had defeated Amedore by 18 votes; therefore, Amedore vacated the seat, becoming the shortest-tenured senator in modern New York history. While 33 Democrats prevailed on Election Day, the Democratic Party did not regain control of the Senate. On December 4, 2012, Senate Republicans announced a power-sharing deal with the five-member
Independent Democratic Conference The Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) was a group of members of the New York State Senate from the Democratic Party who were elected as Democrats but formed a coalition to give the Republicans the majority in the chamber, and attempted to ...
, which had defected from the Senate Democratic leadership in 2011. Under that agreement, Republican Leader Dean Skelos and IDC Leader Jeff Klein would alternate every two weeks as Temporary President of the Senate. The agreement allowed the Republicans and the IDC to jointly control the Senate in spite of the Democrats' 33-30 numerical advantage. In addition, Democratic Senator-elect Simcha Felder stated that he would caucus with the Republicans.


Open seats

* 4th District: Fifteen-term incumbent Republican Owen H. Johnson, 83, did not seek re-election. Assemblyman Philip Boyle was endorsed by the Republican, Conservative and Independence Parties. Boyle defeated Democrat Ricardo Montano. * 29th District: Seven-term incumbent Democrat
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did not seek re-election in this predominantly
LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...
district; Brad Hoylman sought the seat and was elected without opposition. * 37th District: 14-term Democratic Senator Suzi Oppenheimer did not seek re-election. Democratic Assemblyman George S. Latimer defeated Republican Bob Cohen in November. *46th District: This newly created district stretches from Montgomery County south to Ulster County. Assemblyman
George Amedore George A. Amedore Jr. (born April 2, 1969) is an American homebuilder, businessman, and Republican Party (United States), Republican politician. Amedore formerly represented the New York's 46th State Senate district, 46th district in the New Yor ...
ran on the Republican line against Democrat Cecilia Tkaczyk. On January 17, 2013, the final recount was certified, and Tkaczyk was declared the winner by 18 votes. *55th District: Incumbent Republican Senator
James Alesi James S. "Jim" Alesi (born 1948) is a retired politician who served as New York State Senator for the 55th district, representing parts of Monroe County from 1997 to 2012. A Republican, Alesi previously served in the Monroe County Legislature ...
announced that he would not seek re-election, citing concerns about his ability to prevail against a potential primary challenger following his controversial 2011 vote in favor of same-sex marriage. Monroe County Legislator Ted O'Brien ran as a Democrat, and Assemblyman
Sean Hanna Sean T. Hanna (born December 31, 1961) is an American politician who represented the 130th district in the New York State Assembly from 2011 to 2012. His district included portions of Livingston, Monroe and Ontario Counties. Shortly after gr ...
received the Republican nomination. O'Brien defeated Hanna.


State Assembly

On March 20, 2012, special elections were held to fill vacant seats in New York State Assembly districts 93, 100, 103, and 145. In November 2012, elections were held for all 150 Assembly seats. On Election Day, Democrats retained control of the Assembly by a wide margin.


March 20 special elections

*93rd District: This seat became vacant after
Mike Spano Mike Spano (born April 22, 1964) is an American politician who serves as the 42nd mayor of Yonkers, New York. He is a member of the Democratic Party. A former Republican, he served as a member of the New York State Assembly. Biography Born ...
was elected as the mayor of
Yonkers Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...
. Democratic Party nominee Shelley B. Mayer defeated Republican Party nominee Donna Nolan. *100th District: This seat became vacant after
Thomas Kirwan Thomas J. Kirwan (January 17, 1933 – November 28, 2011) was an American politician and member of the New York State Assembly. He represented the 100th Assembly District, which includes the cities of Beacon, Newburgh and Poughkeepsie, a ...
died in November 2011. Democratic Party nominee
Frank Skartados Frank Skartados (January 3, 1956 – April 15, 2018; el, Φρανκ Σκαρτάδος}) was a Greek-American politician and businessman. Skartados was a member of the Democratic Party. A resident of the Ulster County hamlet of Milton, where he ...
defeated Republican Party member John Forman. *103rd District: This seat became vacant after Assemblymember
Marcus Molinaro Marcus J. Molinaro (born October 8, 1975) is an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, Molinaro is the U.S. representative-elect for New York's 19th congressional district, and is currently serving his third term as county execut ...
was elected Dutchess County Executive. Democratic Party nominee
Didi Barrett Didi Barrett is a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly representing Assembly District 106, which includes parts of Dutchess and Columbia Counties. Barrett was elected to the Assembly on March 20, 2012, after a special election to ...
narrowly prevailed over Republican candidate Richard Wager. *145th District: This seat became vacant after Mark J. F. Schroeder was elected Comptroller of the City of Buffalo. Democrat Michael P. Kearns, running on the Republican Party line, defeated Democratic Party nominee Chris Fahey.


Open seats

*7th District: Incumbent Republican Philip Boyle declined renomination to his South Shore Suffolk seat in order to accept the nomination to replace State Senator Owen Johnson. Republican attorney
Andrew Garbarino Andrew Reed Garbarino (born September 27, 1984) is an American attorney and politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 2nd congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the New York State A ...
defeated Democrat Christopher Bodkin. *10th District: Due to health reasons, Incumbent Republican James Conte declined renomination to his Huntington-based seat. Attorney and former Suffolk County Deputy County Executive Joe Dujmic, the Democratic and Working Families Party candidate, faced adjunct professor and South Huntington School Board member Chad Lupinacci. Lupinacci prevailed. *22nd District: This newly drawn district is based in the central western portion of Nassau County and encompasses South Floral Park, Elmont and Valley Stream. The Republican Party designated Sean Wright, an Assistant Town Attorney and Village Attorney, as their candidate. The Democrats nominated Michaelle "Mickey" Solages, the sister of freshman County Legislator Carrie Solages. Solages prevailed. *25th District:
Queens Community Board 11 The Queens Community Board 11 is a local government in the New York City borough of Queens, encompassing the neighborhoods of Bayside, Douglaston–Little Neck, Auburndale, East Flushing, Oakland Gardens and Hollis Hills. It is delimited by U ...
Chairman Jerry Iannece announced he would seek the Democratic nomination for the seat vacated by
Rory Lancman Rory Lancman (born March 4, 1969) is an American politician and former member of the New York City Council, representing the 24th district from 2014 until 2020. He is a Democrat. The district includes Briarwood, Cunningham Park, Flushing, F ...
. While endorsed by the party, Iannece faced a primary challenge
Nily Rozic Nily Rozic is a legislator from Queens, New York and a member of the New York State Assembly. Rozic represents New York's 25th District, which spans the northeast portions of Queens, including the communities of Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Hillcr ...
, former chief of staff to assemblyman Brian Kavanagh. The winner of this primary, Rozic, defeated retired Republican postal worker Abraham Fuchs in the general election. *40th District: Assemblywoman
Grace Meng Grace Meng (born October 1, 1975) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 6th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, her district is in the New York City borough of ...
sought the Democratic nomination in the vacant 6th Congressional District. The Queens Democratic Party endorsed Ron Kim, but he faced a primary from newspaper owner Myungsuk Lee as well as Ethel Chen. The Republicans endorsed Phil Gim, who faced a primary challenge from community activist Sunny Hahn. Each primary set at least one candidate of Korean descent against one candidate of Chinese descent. Kim and Gim won their respective primaries, and Kim won the general election. *62nd District: Assemblyman Lou Tobacco announced that he would not be seeking reelection. The Republican party endorsed City Councilman
Vincent Ignizio Vincent M. Ignizio (born October 2, 1974) is an American politician and former member and Minority Leader of the New York City Council representing Staten Island's New York City's 51st City Council district, 51st district. Before being elected to ...
's chief of staff Joseph Borelli. Borelli defeated Democrat Anthony Mascolo. *91st District: This seat was vacated by George S. Latimer, who ran for State Senate instead. Longtime State Sen. Suzi Oppenheimer's chief of staff, Democrat Steve Otis, defeated Republican Rye Councilman William Villanova. *99th District: Republican incumbent Nancy Calhoun was redistricted from the 96th Assembly District into the 99th Assembly District and decided to retire. Goshen Mayor Kyle Roddey and Colin Schmitt, a former staff intern for Asm. Annie Rabbitt, announced that they would seek the Republican nomination. Roddey, who received the endorsement of the Orange County Republican Committee, the Independence Party, and the Conservative Party, won the primary. The Democratic Party endorsed Woodbury Councilman
James Skoufis James Skoufis (born October 18, 1987) is an American politician of the Democratic Party currently representing the 42nd District of the New York State Senate since 2023. Skoufis previously represented the 39th District prior to redistricting fro ...
for the seat. Skoufis defeated Roddey in the general election. *105th District: Republican incumbent Joel Miller announced that he would not seek re-election in this newly reconfigured Dutchess County district. Former Assemblyman Pat Manning, former 2008 Congressional candidate Kieran Lalor, and Rich Wager sought the Republican nomination. Lalor received the Republican nomination and defeated Democrat Paul Curran. *109th District: The 104th Assembly District was reshaped into the 109th Assembly District. Democratic Jack McEneny, who represented District 104, announced he would not seek re-election. Six candidates ran for the Democratic nomination for this seat, including Chris Higgins, Pat Fahy, Jim Coyne, William McCarthy, Jr., Frank Commisso, Jr., and Margarita Perez. 2010 congressional candidate Ted Danz ran as a Republican. Fahy won the Democratic primary and defeated Danz in the general election. *110th District: Assembly District 109 was reshaped into the current District 110. Democratic Asm. Robert Reilly announced he would not seek re-election. Kevin Frazier (a staff member for Asm. Ronald Canestrari), Albany County Legislator Timothy Nichols, and Phillip G. Steck sought the Democratic nomination. Reilly's 2010 Republican opponent, Jennifer Whalen, ran again. Steck won the Democratic primary and defeated Whalen in the general election. *113th District: Republican Teresa Sayward announced she would not seek re-election. Queensbury town supervisor Dan Stec and former Congressional candidate Doug Hoffman sought the Republican nomination; Stec prevailed and defeated Democrat Dennis Tarantino in November. *133rd District: Republican
Sean Hanna Sean T. Hanna (born December 31, 1961) is an American politician who represented the 130th district in the New York State Assembly from 2011 to 2012. His district included portions of Livingston, Monroe and Ontario Counties. Shortly after gr ...
chose to run for New York State Senate instead of seeking re-election. Bill Nojay, a talk radio host on
WYSL WYSL (1040 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Avon, New York, and serving the Rochester metropolitan area. It broadcasts a talk radio format and is known as "The Voice of Liberty." The station is owned by Robert C. Savage under the ...
and
WLEA WLEA (1480 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. Licensed to Hornell, New York, United States, the station serves the Canisteo Valley area, and is a part of the Elmira Corning Radio Market The station is currently owned by PMJ ...
, facted Richard Burke, the former mayor of Avon, in the Republican primary. Steuben County legislator Randy Weaver, whose last run for Assembly (against Philip Palmesano) in 2010 led to him being thrown off the ballot on a technicality, was the lone Democrat in the race. Nojay won the Republican primary, but Burke has the Conservative Party line. Nojay won the general election. *147th District: Republican Daniel Burling announced he would not seek re-election. Tea Party activist and frequent state senate candidate David DiPietro sought the seat as a Republican and obtained the Conservative Party endorsement. Dan Humiston and Christina Abt faced each other in a relatively rare Independence Party primary, with Abt securing the Working Families line and the Democratic line as well. Humiston, DiPietro, David Mariacher, and Christopher Lane sought the Republican nomination.DiPietro gains Conservative nod in 147th assembly district
. ''The Buffalo News''. Retrieved July 18, 2012.
DiPietro prevailed in the November election.


See also

*
United States Senate election in New York, 2012 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 ...
*
United States House of Representatives elections in New York, 2012 The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in New York were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 to elect the twenty-seven U.S. representatives from the state, one from each of the state's twenty seven congressional districts, a los ...


References


External links


New York Board of ElectionsYork_New York
at Ballotpedia
New York judicial elections, 2012
at Judgepedia
New York 2012
campaign finance data from
OpenSecrets 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) ...

New York Congressional Races in 2012
campaign finance data from
OpenSecrets 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 {{DEFAULTSORT:New York State Elections, 2012
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