Elections held in the state of Washington on November 6, 2012. A nonpartisan blanket primary was held on August 7, 2012.

Federal

U.S. President

In this election, Washington had 12 electors to the Electoral College. Incumbent Democratic president Barack Obama safely carried the state, gaining all 12 electoral votes against Republican nominee

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...

U.S. Senate

Incumbent Democratic

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Maria Cantwell won re-election to a third term against Republican state senator

Michael Baumgartner Michael James Baumgartner (born December 13, 1975) is an American politician and diplomat serving as the 28th Spokane County Treasurer. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a member of the Washington State Senate, representi ...

U.S. House

Due to the results of 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 servin ...

, Washington elected

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 ...

from ten

congressional districts Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

, a gain of one seat. Incumbents Rick Larsen (D-), Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-), Doc Hastings (R-),

Cathy McMorris Rodgers Cathy Anne McMorris Rodgers (born May 22, 1969) is an American politician who is the U.S. representative for , which encompasses the eastern third of the state and includes Spokane, the state's second-largest city. A Republican, McMorris Rodgers ...

(R-), Jim McDermott (D-), Dave Reichert (R-), and

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...

(R-) ran for re-election and won. Incumbents Jay Inslee (D-) and Norman D. Dicks (D-) retired and were respectively succeeded by

Suzan DelBene Suzan Kay DelBene (née Oliver; ; born February 17, 1962) is an American politician and businesswoman who has been the United States House of Representatives, United States representative from Washington's 1st congressional district since 2012. ...

(D) and

Derek Kilmer Derek Christian Kilmer (born January 1, 1974) is an American politician who has been the U.S. representative for Washington's 6th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a member of the Washington House ...

(D). Denny Heck (D) was elected to the newly created . The resulting composition was six Democrats and four Republicans.

State

Governor

Incumbent Democratic governor Christine Gregoire declined to run for a third term. Democratic congressman Jay Inslee ran to succeed her, earning Gregoire's endorsement. He faced Republican

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Rob McKenna in the general election, defeating him by a small margin.

Lieutenant governor

Incumbent Democratic

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

Brad Owen Bradley Scott Owen (born May 23, 1950) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 15th Lieutenant Governor of Washington from 1997 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was previously elected to the Washington State Legisl ...

ran for re-election to a fifth term.

Polling

=General election

Secretary of State

Incumbent Republican Secretary of State Sam Reed declined to run for re-election to a fourth term. The general election was won by Republican Thurston County auditor Kim Wyman, who defeated Democratic state senator Kathleen Drew by under one percentage point, resulting in the smallest statewide margin in 2012.

Attorney general

Incumbent Republican

Rob McKenna retired to run for governor and did not seek a third term. Two King County Councilmembers, Republican Reagan Dunn and Democrat Bob Ferguson, faced off in the general election. Ferguson ultimately won the election.

State Treasurer

Incumbent Democratic Treasurer James McIntire ran for re-election to a second term.

State Auditor

Incumbent Democratic Auditor

Brian Sonntag Brian S. Sonntag (born December 28, 1951) was the ninth Washington State Auditor. He served five terms, from 1993 until his retirement in 2013. He is a Democrat. Personal Sonntag was born in 1951 in Tacoma, Washington. He attended Tacoma Commun ...

declined to run for re-election to a sixth term. Democratic state representative Troy Kelley won the election, defeating Republican James Watkins.

Polling

=General election

Insurance Commissioner

Incumbent Democratic Insurance Commissioner

Mike Kreidler Myron Bradford Kreidler (born September 28, 1943) is an American physician and politician serving his sixth term as the eighth Washington Insurance Commissioner. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served one term in the Congress, re ...

ran for re-election to a fourth term.

Commissioner of Public Lands

Incumbent Democratic Commissioner of Public Lands

Peter J. Goldmark Peter James Goldmark (born August 4, 1946) was the 15th Commissioner of Public Lands of Washington, head of the Washington Department of Natural Resources from 2009 to 2017. He is a Democrat from a rural part of Okanogan County, Washington, out ...

ran for re-election to a second term.

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Incumbent Democratic

Superintendent of Public Instruction A state education agency or state department of education is the state-level government organization within each U.S. state or territory responsible for education, including providing information, resources, and technical assistance on educationa ...

Randy Dorn ran for re-election to a second term. He was unopposed in the general election. The superintendent is the only nonpartisan statewide election.

State Senate

The Democrats won on election night, but in early December two Democrats formed a conservative coalition with the Republican Caucus.

State House of Representatives

Judicial positions

Ballot measures

Initiative 502 Washington Initiative 502 (I-502) "on marijuana reform" was an initiative to the Washington State Legislature, which appeared on the November 2012 general ballot, passing by a margin of approximately 56 to 44 percent. Originally submitted to t ...

– Passed – Licensing and Regulating Marijuana * Initiative 1185 – Passed – Supermajority to Raise Taxes or Close Loopholes * Initiative 1240 – Passed – Allow Charter Schools * Referendum 74 – Passed – Same Sex Marriage

References

{{2012 United States elections Washington