Colorado 2012 legislative election results

The tabs below contain analysis of election results in the 2012 legislative elections for Colorado.

• Senate
• House
• National Partisan Trends

2012 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
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Other 2012 Election information
State legislative elections • State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2012 • State Senate elections • State House elections

Colorado State Senate Election Results

This page contains macro-level election results and analysis for the Colorado State Senate 2012 elections. For results in individual contests see our Colorado State Senate elections, 2012 page. The following is a breakdown of the state senate before and after the election:

Colorado State Senate
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	20	19
	Republican Party	15	16
Total		35	35

What You'll See on This Page

This page will display the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents running on November 6
• Defeated incumbents
• Challengers who defeated an incumbent
• Newly elected senators
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State Senate Overview:

• A total of 16 of the state's Senate seats were up for election in 2012.

Incumbents

Incumbents running in November 6

The following is a list of all of the incumbents running on the November 6 general election ballot:

1. Bill Cadman
2. Evie Hudak
3. Irene Aguilar
4. Linda Newell
5. Mark Scheffel
6. Mary Hodge
7. Michael Johnston (Colorado)
8. Morgan Carroll
9. Pat Steadman
10. Rollie Heath

Incumbents defeated

The followings is a list of incumbents defeated in 2012:

General election

Results will display after the election on November 6.

Primary election

Candidate	Party	District
Jean White	Republican	Colorado State Senate, District 8

Challengers who beat an incumbent

The following is a list of challengers who defeated an incumbent in 2012:

General election

Candidate	Party	District
Andrew Kerr	Democratic	Colorado State Senate District 22
David Balmer	Republican	Colorado State Senate District 27
Jessie Ulibarri	Democratic	Colorado State Senate District 21
John Kefalas	Democratic	Colorado State Senate District 14
Larry Crowder	Republican	Colorado State Senate District 35
Matt Jones	Democratic	Colorado State Senate District 17
Nancy Todd	Democratic	Colorado State Senate District 28
Owen Hill	Republican	Colorado State Senate District 10
Randy Baumgardner	Republican	Colorado State Senate District 8
Vicki Marble	Republican	Colorado State Senate District 23

Primary election

Results will display after the election on November 6.

New State Senators and General Election Winners

Newly elected senators

The following list will display the newly-elected members of the Colorado State Senate:

Democratic

1. Andrew Kerr
2. Jessie Ulibarri
3. John Kefalas
4. Matt Jones
5. Nancy Todd

Republican

1. David Balmer
2. Larry Crowder
3. Owen Hill
4. Randy Baumgardner
5. Vicki Marble

Open Seat Winners

The following will display a list of candidates who won election in seats where no incumbent was running:

Democratic

Results will display after the election on November 6.

Republican

Results will display after the election on November 6.

Candidates who won election

The following will be a list of all candidates elected to the Colorado State Senate:

Democratic

1. Andrew Kerr
2. Evie Hudak
3. Irene Aguilar
4. Jessie Ulibarri
5. John Kefalas
6. Linda Newell
7. Mary Hodge
8. Matt Jones
9. Michael Johnston (Colorado)
10. Morgan Carroll
11. Nancy Todd
12. Pat Steadman
13. Rollie Heath

Republican

1. Bill Cadman
2. David Balmer
3. Larry Crowder
4. Mark Scheffel
5. Owen Hill
6. Randy Baumgardner
7. Vicki Marble

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates will not face major party competition:

Democratic

No candidates have been added to this category yet.

Republican

1. Bill Cadman
2. Owen Hill

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

The following is a list of third party and independent candidates who are running in 2012:

1. Barrett Rothe
2. Brandon Hughes
3. Chris Grundemann
4. Christopher Mull
5. Courtney Kolva
6. Dave Respecki
7. James Michael Bristol
8. Jeff Johnston
9. Ken Bray
10. Lloyd Sweeny
11. Michele Rae Poague
12. Robert Harrison
13. Ronald Schweizer
14. Sacha Weis
15. William Stuart Bartley

2012 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
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Other 2012 Election information
State legislative elections • State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2012 • State Senate elections • State House elections

Colorado State House Election Results

This page contains macro-level election results and analysis for the Colorado House of Representatives elections in 2012. For results in individual contests, see our Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2012. The following is a breakdown of the state house before and after the election:

Colorado House of Representatives
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	32	37
	Republican Party	33	28
Total		65	65

What You'll See on This Page

This page will display the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents running on November 6
• Defeated incumbents
• Challengers who defeated an incumbent
• Newly elected representatives
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State House Overview

• All 65 of the state's House seats were up for election in 2012.

Incumbency Analysis

Incumbents who ran on November 6

The following is a list of all of the incumbents who are running on the November 6 general election ballot:

1. Amy Stephens
2. Angela Williams
3. Beth McCann
4. Bob Gardner
5. Brian DelGrosso
6. Carole Murray
7. Cheri Gerou
8. Cherylin Peniston
9. Chris Holbert
10. Cindy Acree
11. Claire Levy
12. Crisanta Duran
13. Dan Pabon
14. Daniel Kagan
15. Dave Young
16. Dickey Hullinghorst
17. Don Coram
18. Edward Vigil
19. Frank McNulty
20. J. Paul Brown
21. Janak Joshi
22. Jeanne Labuda
23. Jerry Sonnenberg
24. Jonathan Singer
25. Kathleen Conti
26. Kevin Priola
27. Libbi Szabo
28. Lois Court
29. Mark Ferrandino
30. Mark H. Barker
31. Mark Waller
32. Max Tyler
33. Millie Hamner
34. Pete Lee
35. Randy Fischer
36. Ray Scott
37. Rhonda Fields
38. Robert Ramirez
39. Spencer Swalm
40. Su Ryden
41. Sue Schafer

Incumbents defeated

The followings will display a a list of incumbents defeated in 2012:

General election

Candidate	Party	District
Cindy Acree	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 40
J. Paul Brown	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 59
Mark H. Barker	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 17
Robert Ramirez	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 29

Primary election

Candidate	Party	District
Marsha Looper	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 19

Challengers who beat an incumbent

The following will display a list of challengers who defeated an incumbent in 2012:

General election

Candidate	Party	District
Brittany Pettersen	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 28
Clarice Navarro-Ratzlaff	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 47
Dan Nordberg	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 14
Diane Mitsch Bush	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 26
Dianne Primavera	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 33
Dominick Moreno	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 32
James Wilson (Colorado)	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 60
Jared Wright	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 54
Jenise May	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 30
Joann Ginal	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 52
John Buckner	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 40
Joseph Salazar	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 31
Justin Everett	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 22
Leroy Garcia, Jr.	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 46
Lois Landgraf	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 21
Lori Saine	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 63
Michael McLachlan (Colorado)	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 59
Mike Foote	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 12
Paul Rosenthal (Colorado)	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 9
Perry Buck	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 49
Polly Lawrence	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 39
Robert E. Rankin	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 57
Stephen Humphrey	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 48
Steve Lebsock	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 34
Thomas Exum, Sr.	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 17
Timothy Dore	Republican	Colorado House of Representatives District 64
Tracy Kraft-Tharp	Democratic	Colorado House of Representatives District 29

Primary election

No candidates have been added to this category yet.

New Representatives and General Election Winners

Newly elected representatives

The following will list the newly-elected members of the Colorado House of Representatives:

Democratic

1. Brittany Pettersen
2. Diane Mitsch Bush
3. Dianne Primavera
4. Dominick Moreno
5. Jenise May
6. Joann Ginal
7. John Buckner
8. Joseph Salazar
9. Jovan Melton
10. Leroy Garcia, Jr.
11. Michael McLachlan (Colorado)
12. Mike Foote
13. Paul Rosenthal (Colorado)
14. Steve Lebsock
15. Thomas Exum, Sr.
16. Tracy Kraft-Tharp

Republican

1. Clarice Navarro-Ratzlaff
2. Dan Nordberg
3. James Wilson (Colorado)
4. Jared Wright
5. Justin Everett
6. Lois Landgraf
7. Lori Saine
8. Perry Buck
9. Polly Lawrence
10. Robert E. Rankin
11. Stephen Humphrey
12. Timothy Dore

Open Seat Winners

The following will list candidates who won election in seats where no incumbent was running:

Democratic

1. Jovan Melton

Republican

Results will display after the election on November 6.

Candidates who won election

The following will list all candidates elected to the Colorado House of Representatives in 2012:

Democratic

1. Angela Williams
2. Beth McCann
3. Brittany Pettersen
4. Cherylin Peniston
5. Claire Levy
6. Crisanta Duran
7. Dan Pabon
8. Daniel Kagan
9. Dave Young
10. Diane Mitsch Bush
11. Dianne Primavera
12. Dickey Hullinghorst
13. Dominick Moreno
14. Edward Vigil
15. Jeanne Labuda
16. Jenise May
17. Joann Ginal
18. John Buckner
19. Jonathan Singer
20. Joseph Salazar
21. Jovan Melton
22. Leroy Garcia, Jr.
23. Lois Court
24. Mark Ferrandino
25. Max Tyler
26. Michael McLachlan (Colorado)
27. Mike Foote
28. Millie Hamner
29. Paul Rosenthal (Colorado)
30. Pete Lee
31. Randy Fischer
32. Rhonda Fields
33. Steve Lebsock
34. Su Ryden
35. Sue Schafer
36. Thomas Exum, Sr.
37. Tracy Kraft-Tharp

Republican

1. Amy Stephens
2. Bob Gardner
3. Brian DelGrosso
4. Carole Murray
5. Cheri Gerou
6. Chris Holbert
7. Clarice Navarro-Ratzlaff
8. Dan Nordberg
9. Don Coram
10. Frank McNulty
11. James Wilson (Colorado)
12. Janak Joshi
13. Jared Wright
14. Jerry Sonnenberg
15. Justin Everett
16. Kathleen Conti
17. Kevin Priola
18. Libbi Szabo
19. Lois Landgraf
20. Lori Saine
21. Mark Waller
22. Perry Buck
23. Polly Lawrence
24. Ray Scott
25. Robert E. Rankin
26. Spencer Swalm
27. Stephen Humphrey
28. Timothy Dore

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates will not face major party competition:

Democratic

1. Jovan Melton

Republican

1. Chris Holbert
2. Jared Wright
3. Jerry Sonnenberg
4. Stephen Humphrey
5. Timothy Dore

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

The following is a list of third party and independent candidates running in 2012:

1. Alan MacGregor Bassett
2. Amy Fedde
3. Barry Forest Pace
4. Brett Halbert
5. Christian Althen
6. Curtis Imrie
7. Dan Enright
8. David Jurist
9. David Rawe
10. Desiree Maikranz
11. Donna Price
12. Ellen Temby
13. G. T. "Bud" Martin
14. Hanna Kjerengtroen
15. Hans Romer
16. Howard Lambert
17. JM Fay
18. Jack J. Woehr
19. Jarrod Austin
20. Jeff Downs
21. Jeffrey Kicia
22. John Gibson
23. Jonathan Barber
24. Kathleen Curry
25. Larry Reedy
26. Laticia Burns
27. Lynn Weitzel
28. M Bruce Waters
29. Matthew Webber
30. Maury Mingle
31. Michael Beckerman
32. Michael Edstrom
33. Michael Giallombardo
34. Michael Renker
35. Mike Law
36. Morton Brooks
37. Nick Schneider
38. Niles Aronson
39. R. David Lucero
40. Robert Melamede
41. Robert Petrowsky
42. Sean Halstead
43. Shea Lantz
44. Susan Quilleash
45. Thomas O'Dell
46. Tim Menger
47. Timothy Shawn Biolchini
48. Victor Forsythe Villacres
49. Virgil Fenn
50. W. Earl Allen
51. Wes Long (Colorado)
52. Will Hiltscher

2012 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Maine Massachusetts • Michigan• Minnesota • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming
Other 2012 Election information
State legislative elections • State legislative election results • Statewide elections, 2012 • State Senate elections • State House elections

National Partisan Trends

The following tables will detail the partisan breakdown of national election results.

Incumbents who were defeated in the general election

In the 44 states with elections, there were 4,534 incumbents who ran in the general election. The following is a breakdown of incumbent defeats in the 2012 general election:

Incumbents defeated in 2012 legislative general election
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	21	49	70
Republican	37	182	219
Third Party	2	3	5
TOTALS	60	234	294

Total new legislators elected

In total, 1,707 (28.4%) new legislators were elected in 2012. Of these 1,707, 849 (50.0%) were Republicans and 854 (50.0%) were Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of new legislators.

New Legislators after the 2012 legislative elections
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	165	684	849
Republican	202	652	854
Independent	0	4	4
TOTALS	367	1,340	1,707

Winners of Open Seats

Open seats contests made up 705 (11.7%) of the 6,015 seats in 2012. Of these 705 open seats, Republicans won 401 (56.9%) while Democrats won 304 (43.1%). Going into the election, the number of open seats formerly held by each party was quite similar. Estimates prior to the election suggested that approximately 52% of the open seats were previously held by Republicans and 48% were held by Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of open seat winners.

Open Seat Winners in 2012 legislative elections
Party	Senate	House	Total
Democratic	82	220	302
Republican	105	296	401
Third Party	0	0	0
TOTALS	187	516	703

Impact on legislative majorities

See also: Partisan balance of state legislatures

Partisan Balance of Chambers with 2012 Elections
	Pre-election				Post-election
Legislative chamber
State senates	17	24	1	1	18	24	0	1
State houses	15	27	1	0	19	24	0	0
Totals:	32	51	2	1	37	48	0	1

Partisan Balance of All 99 Chambers Before and After 2012 Elections
	Pre-election				Post-election
Legislative chamber
State senates	19	28	2	1	20	28	1	1
State houses	17	31	1	0	21	28	0	0
Totals:	35	60	3	1	41	56	1	1