Massachusetts' 5th congressional district elections, 2012
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| November 6, 2012 |
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Ed Markey  |
Niki Tsongas (Elected to District 3) |
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Ed Markey (D) won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Massachusetts' 5th, on November 6th, 2012.[1] He had previously served as the representative for the 7th district.
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Primary: Massachusetts has a most closed primary system, in which the selection of a party's candidates in an election is limited to registered party members. In Massachusetts, however, independent voters may select which party's primary to vote in.
Voter registration: Voters were required to register to vote in the primary by August 17. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 17.[2]
- See also: Massachusetts elections, 2012
Incumbent: Because Massachusetts lost a seat after the 2010 Census, the state's congressional districts went through significant changes. Prior to the election, the 5th Congressional District is represented by Niki Tsongas (D). However, Tsongas was drawn into the 3rd Congressional district. Current 7th Congressional district incumbent Ed Markey ran in the 5th District.
This was the first election using new district maps based on 2010 Census data. Massachusetts' 5th congressional district was located in the eastern portion of the state and included Middlesex, Norfolk, and Suffolk counties.[3]
Candidates
Note: Election results were added on election night as races were called. Vote totals will be added when official election results are certified. For more information about Ballotpedia's election coverage plan, click here. If you find any errors in this list, please email: Geoff Pallay.
General election candidates
September 6 Democratic Primary
- Ed Markey:
Incumbent from the 7th Congressional district
- Ed Markey:
Republican Primary
- Frank Addivinola : [4]
- Jeff Semon: Financial consultant[5]
- Tom Tierney
Election Results
General Election
| U.S. House, Massachusetts, District 5 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Ed Markey Incumbent |
70.7% | 257,490 | |
| Republican | Tom Tierney | 22.8% | 82,944 | |
| N/A | All Others | 0.2% | 675 | |
| N/A | Blank Votes | 6.3% | 23,092 | |
| Total Votes | 364,201 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State "Return of Votes" | ||||
Republican Primary
| Massachusetts' 5th Congressional District Republican Primary, 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|
Tom Tierney |
41.8% | 4,824 |
| Frank Addivinola | 30.6% | 3,529 |
| Jeff Semon | 27.6% | 3,186 |
| Total Votes | 11,539 | |
Impact of redistricting
- See also: Redistricting in Massachusetts
The only essential similarity between the old 5th district and the new 5th district was a numeric value. Because of the redistricting process, the 5th district has migrated south to occupy the area once known as the 7th district (Rep. Markey's old district), and has expanded to include the following new areas:
- Southborough (59-40 for Scott Brown in 2010) [6]
- Ashland (54-45 for Scott Brown in 2010) [6]
- Holliston (56-44 for Scott Brown in 2010) [6]
- Sherborn (54-45 for Scott Brown in 2010) [6]
- majority of Sudbury (51-48 for Martha Coakley in 2010) [6]
- half of Cambridge (85-15 for Martha Coakley in 2010) [6]
The Republican-leaning areas west of Boston are less populated but more numerous, while Cambridge (half of which is now included in the 5th district) is densely populated and overwhelmingly Democratic.
District partisanship
FairVote's Monopoly Politics 2012 study
- See also: FairVote's Monopoly Politics 2012
In 2012, FairVote did a study on partisanship in the congressional districts, giving each a percentage ranking (D/R) based on the new 2012 maps and comparing that to the old 2010 maps. Massachusetts' 5th District became more Democratic because of redistricting.[7]
- 2012: 63D / 37R
- 2010: 62D / 38R
Cook Political Report's PVI
In 2012, Cook Political Report released its updated figures on the Partisan Voter Index, which measures each congressional district's partisanship relative to the rest of the country. Massachusetts' 5th congressional district has a PVI of D+16, which is the 64th most Democratic district in the country. In 2008, this district was won by Barack Obama (D), 67-33 percent over John McCain (R). In 2004, John Kerry (D) won the district 67-33 percent over George W. Bush (R).[8]
District history
2010
On November 2, 2010, Niki Tsongas won re-election to the United States House of Representatives. She defeated Jon Golnik in the general election.[9]
| U.S. House of Representatives, Massachusetts Congressional District 5 Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Niki Tsongas Incumbent |
56.5% | 122,676 | |
| Republican | Jon Golnik | 43.5% | 94,501 | |
| Total Votes | 217,177 | |||
Campaign donors
Ed Markey
| Ed Markey (2012) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[10] | March 31, 2012 | $3,145,572.82 | $102,763.91 | $(118,638.54) | $3,129,698.19 | ||||
| July Quarterly[11] | June 30, 2012 | $3,129,698.19 | $371,467.71 | $(248,624.10) | $3,252,541.80 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $474,231.62 | $(367,262.64) | ||||||||
| Tom Tierney (2012)[12] Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[13] | April 15, 2012 | $1,180.31 | $0.00 | $(190.89) | $989.42 | ||||
| July Quarterly[14] | July 4, 2012 | $989.42 | $0.00 | $(908.35) | $81.07 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $0 | $(1,099.24) | ||||||||
Jeff Semon
| Jeff Semon (2012) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[15] | March 31, 2012 | $597.96 | $5,134.00 | $(2,932.50) | $2,799.46 | ||||
| July Quarterly[16] | June 30, 2012 | $2,799.46 | $5,470.00 | $(4,956.41) | $3,313.05 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $10,604 | $(7,888.91) | ||||||||
External links
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Massachusetts, 2012
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2012
- United States Senate elections in Massachusetts, 2012
References
- ↑ Politico "2012 Election Map, Massachusetts"
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts "Voter Registration Information," Accessed July 25, 2012
- ↑ Massachuestts Redistricting Map "Map" Accessed August 31, 2012
- ↑ Frank Addivinola "Official Campaign Page" May 14, 2012
- ↑ Roll Call "Republican Announces Long-Shot Bid in Massachusetts," June 21, 2011
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 New York Times "Interactive Map, Election Results" August 29, 2012
- ↑ "2011 Redistricting and 2012 Elections in Massachusetts," September 2012
- ↑ Cook Political Report "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" Accessed October 2012
- ↑ MSNBC "2010 Election Results"
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "Ed Markey April Quarterly," Accessed July 2, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "Ed Markey July Quarterly," Accessed July 2, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "Tom Tierney Summary Report," Accessed October 1, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "April Quarterly" Accessed October 1, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "July Quarterly" Accessed October 1, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "Glenn Anderson April Quarterly," Accessed July 2, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission "Glenn Anderson July Quarterly," Accessed July 2, 2012
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