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Georgia elections, 2012
The state of Georgia held elections in 2012. Below are the dates of note:
- Signature filing deadline: May 25, 2012
- Primary date: July 31, 2012
- General election date: November 6, 2012
| On the 2012 ballot | Click here for all November 6, 2012 Election Results | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Senate | 
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Preview Article | |
| U.S. House (14 seats) | 
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| State Executives (2 down-ballot positions) |
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Preview Article | |
| State Senate (56 seats) |
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Preview Article | |
| State House (180 seats) |
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| Ballot measures (3 measure) |
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Preview Article | |
2012 Elections
For election results in the 50 states, see our November 6, 2012 election results page
Elections by type
Georgia received an additional seat from redistricting.
| Members of the U.S. House from Georgia -- Partisan Breakdown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 5 | 5 | |
| Republican Party | 8 | 9 | |
| Total | 13 | 14 | |
| District | General Election Candidates | Incumbent | 2012 Winner | Partisan Switch? |
| 1st |  Lesli Rae Messinger Jack Kingston |
Jack Kingston | Jack Kingston |
No |
| 2nd | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. John House |
Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. |
No |
| 3rd | Lynn A. Westmoreland |
Lynn A. Westmoreland | Lynn A. Westmoreland |
No |
| 4th | Henry C. Johnson, Jr. Chris Vaughn |
Henry C. Johnson, Jr. | Henry C. Johnson, Jr. |
No |
| 5th | John Lewis Howard Stopeck |
John Lewis | John Lewis |
No |
| 6th | Jeff Kazanow Tom Price |
Tom Price | Tom Price |
No |
| 7th | Steve Reilly Rob Woodall |
Rob Woodall | Rob Woodall |
No |
| 8th | Austin Scott |
Austin Scott | Austin Scott |
no |
| 9th | Jody Cooley Doug Collins |
Tom Graves | Doug Collins |
No |
| 10th | Paul Broun |
Paul Broun | Paul Broun |
No |
| 11th | Patrick Thompson Phil Gingrey |
Phil Gingrey | Phil Gingrey |
No |
| 12th | John Barrow Lee Anderson |
John Barrow | John Barrow |
No |
| 13th | David Scott S. Malik |
David Scott | David Scott |
No |
| 14th | Daniel Grant Tom Graves |
N/A | Tom Graves |
N/A |
There are two state executive positions up for election. Voters will elect two members of the Georgia Public Service Commission.
| Georgia Public Service Commission District 3 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Chuck Eaton Incumbent |
52.1% | 1,858,663 | |
| Democratic | Stephen Oppenheimer | 43.1% | 1,537,923 | |
| Libertarian | Brad Ploeger | 4.8% | 171,138 | |
| Total Votes | 3,567,724 | |||
| Election Results via Georgia Secretary of State. | ||||
| Georgia Public Service Commission District 5 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Stan Wise Incumbent |
65.8% | 2,110,146 | |
| Libertarian | David Staples | 34.2% | 1,095,115 | |
| Total Votes | 3,205,261 | |||
| Election Results via Georgia Secretary of State. | ||||
- See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2012
Heading into the election, Republicans maintain partisan control in the state senate.
| Georgia State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 20 | 18 | |
| Republican Party | 36 | 38 | |
| Total | 56 | 56 | |
Heading into the election, Republicans maintain partisan control in the state house.
| Georgia House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 63 | 60 | |
| Republican Party | 114 | 119 | |
| Independent | 1 | 1 | |
| Vacancy | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 180 | 180 | |
- See also: Georgia 2012 ballot measures
July 31:
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VR | Referendum 1 | Taxes | Would increase the sales tax in regions that pass the referendum by one-cent. | [1]
|
November 6:
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LRCA | Amendment 1 | Education | Regarding the establishment of public charter schools. |
|
| LRCA | Amendment 2 | Admin of gov't | Gives the State Properties Commission the authority to enter into multiyear lease agreements. |
|
Eligibility to Vote
Primary election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 primary elections
Georgia is one of 19 states to use an open primary system. When runoff elections are used, voters must vote in same party's runoff election as they voted for in the first round election. Voters had to register to vote by July 2, 2012 to vote in the primary election.[2] (Information about registering to vote)
General election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 general elections
The deadline to register to vote is 28 days prior to the election day, which in 2012 was October 9.[3]
Note: Some states have a voter registration deadline 30 days prior to the election, but because this may fall on a weekend and Columbus Day is on Monday, October 8th, have extended the deadline to October 9, 2012.
- Voter ID info
- Residency requirements: A legal resident of Georgia and of the county [4]
- Same-day registration: None
Voting absentee
- See also: Absentee Voting
Eligibility
All voters are eligible to vote absentee in Georgia. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting absentee.
Deadlines
To vote absentee, an absentee ballot application must be received at any point up until the close of polls on election day. However, a returned absentee ballot must be received by 7pm on election day.
Military and overseas voting
For full details, visit the Federal Voting Assistance Program here.
Voting early
- See also: Early voting
Georgia is one of 33 states that has early voting with no specific requirements as to who can vote early. Early voting is held on the Monday-Friday of the week immediately preceding the election. The average number of days prior to an election that voters can cast an early ballot is 21 days in states with a definitive starting date.
Issues
2012
Department of Justice sues over voting deadlines
On June 29, 2012 the Department of Justice filed a suit in federal court against the state of Georgia, alleging that service members, their family members and overseas civilian voters won’t have time to vote by absentee ballot in run-off elections, if they are required.[5] According to the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), states must transmit all validly requested ballots to UOCAVA voters at least 45 days before an election, unless a hardship exemption is obtained, for which Georgia failed to file.[5] However, this conflicts with the timeline for runoff elections, in which the primary runoff, by law, must be held 21 days after the regular or special primary election, and if a run-off is required after the Nov. 6 general election, it will be held 28 days later, on Dec. 4, which also wouldn’t provide the required 45 days.[5]
As part of the lawsuit, the Department of Justice is asking Georgia to "extend the ballot receipt deadline to Aug. 31 for these voters, to send ballots by express delivery as soon as possible before the Aug. 21 run-off election, and inform UOCAVA voters no later than July 7 of their right to request a state write-in absentee ballot or their official absentee ballot for any run-off election by downloading it from the Internet, by email, or by fax."[5]
See also
References
- ↑ Though the measure was statewide it was voted on by each 12 regions separately, resulting in the referendum being passed in 3 and defeated in 9
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State "Election Dates," Accessed April 25, 2012
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State "Election Dates" Accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State "Voter Eligibility" Accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Marine Corps Times "Justice sues Georgia over voting deadlines" Accessed July 24, 2012
