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Wisconsin's 1st congressional district elections, 2012
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| November 6, 2012 |
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Primary: Wisconsin has an open primary system, in which any registered voter can choose which party's primary to vote in, without having to be a member of that party.
Voter registration: Voter registration requirements may vary by municipality, although voters with valid ID must be granted a provisional ballot at the polls.[2]
- See also: Wisconsin elections, 2012
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Paul Ryan (R), who was first elected to the House in 1998. In 2011 redistricting, The Hill published a list of the Top Ten House Members who were helped by redistricting.[3] Ryan ranked 9th on the list.[3]
While Ryan was selected by Mitt Romney on August 11 to be hran mate, Wisconsin law allows Ryan to pursue his House re-election at the same time. If Ryan were elected for both offices, the state would hold a special election to fill his U.S. House seat. Ryan chose to continue with his re-election campaign.[4]
This was the first election using new district maps based on 2010 Census data. Wisconsin's 1st congressional district encompasses Rock, Walworth, Waukesha, Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha counties.[5]
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
August 14, 2012 primary results
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Election Results
General Election
| U.S. House, Wisconsin, District 1 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Rob Zerban | 43.4% | 158,414 | |
| Republican |  Paul Ryan Incumbent |
54.9% | 200,423 | |
| Libertarian | Keith Deschler | 1.7% | 6,054 | |
| Miscellaneous | N/A | 0% | 167 | |
| Total Votes | 365,058 | |||
| Source: Wisconsin Government Accountability Board "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Impact of redistricting
- See also: Redistricting in Wisconsin
Following the 2010 Census, Wisconsin kept its 8 congressional seats. In redistricting, the Wisconsin Legislature sought to even out the districts, which due to the census information, required making the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd districts smaller, and making the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th larger. The new district map was signed into law on August 9, 2011.
Under the new map, the 1st district is more solidly Republican.
In redistricting, The Hill published a list of the Top Ten House Members who were helped by redistricting.[3] Ryan ranked 9th on the list.[3] The article notes that the redistricting process, controlled by Republicans in the state House, was rushed through rather quickly ahead of recalls happening in the state, and added a few more points to the Republican base in Ryan's district.[3]
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. Wisconsin's 1st District became more balanced because of redistricting.[8]
- 2012: 48D / 52R
- 2010: 48D / 52R
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. Wisconsin's 1st congressional district has a PVI of R+3, which is the 209th most Republican district in the country. In 2008, this district was won by Barack Obama (D), 51-49 percent over John McCain (R). In 2004, George W. Bush (R) won the district 54-46 percent over John Kerry (D).[9]
District history
2010
On November 2, 2010, Paul Ryan won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives, defeating John Heckenlively (D) and Joseph Kexel (L).[10]
| U.S. House of Representatives General Election, Wisconsin, Congressional District 1, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Paul Ryan Incumbent |
68.2% | 179,819 | |
| Democratic | John Heckenlively | 30.1% | 79,363 | |
| Libertarian | Joseph Kexel | 1.6% | 4,311 | |
| Total Votes | 263,493 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Wisconsin, 2012
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2012
- United States Senate elections in Wisconsin, 2012
References
- ↑ Politico "2012 House Race Results"
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board "Registration and Voting," Accessed July 27, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 The Hill "House members most helped by redistricting" Accessed April 17, 2012
- ↑ Huffington Post "Paul Ryan House Race Can Proceed Despite VP Nomination," August 11, 2012
- ↑ Wisconsin Redistricting Map "Map" Accessed July 24, 2012
- ↑ National Journal "The Big Get," Accessed December 8, 2011
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board "Candidates registered by office," Accessed June 10, 2012
- ↑ "2011 Redistricting and 2012 Elections in Wisconsin," September 2012
- ↑ Cook Political Report "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" Accessed October 2012
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
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