Delaware 2012 legislative election results

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

Senate

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

Delaware State Senate Election Results

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

Delaware State Senate
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	14	13
	Republican Party	7	8
Total		21	21

What You'll See on This Page

This page displays the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents who ran on November 6
• Newly elected senators
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State Senate Overview:

• A total of 21 of the state's Senate seats were up for election in 2012.

Incumbents

Incumbents who ran on November 6

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

1. Harris McDowell
2. Catherine Cloutier
3. Patricia Blevins
4. David Sokola
5. Karen Peterson (Delaware)
6. Dorinda Connor
7. David McBride
8. Bruce Ennis
9. David G. Lawson
10. Robert Marshall (Delaware)
11. Robert Venables
12. Margaret Rose Henry
13. Michael Katz
14. Bethany Hall-Long
15. Brian Bushweller
16. Gary Simpson
17. Colin Bonini

New State Senators and General Election Winners

Newly elected senators

The following list displays newly-elected members of the Delaware State Senate:

Democratic

1. Bryan Townsend
2. Nicole Poore

Republican

1. Gregory Lavelle
2. Gerald Hocker
3. Ernesto Lopez
4. Brian Pettyjohn

Candidates who won election

The following is a list of all candidates elected to the Delaware State Senate:

Democratic

1. Harris McDowell
2. Patricia Blevins
3. David Sokola
4. Karen Peterson (Delaware)
5. David McBride
6. Bruce Ennis
7. Robert Marshall (Delaware)
8. Robert Venables
9. Margaret Rose Henry
10. Bethany Hall-Long
11. Brian Bushweller
12. Bryan Townsend
13. Nicole Poore

Republican

1. Catherine Cloutier
2. David G. Lawson
3. Gregory Lavelle
4. Gerald Hocker
5. Gary Simpson
6. Colin Bonini
7. Ernesto Lopez
8. Brian Pettyjohn

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic

1. Harris McDowell
2. Patricia Blevins
3. Karen Peterson (Delaware)
4. David McBride
5. Robert Marshall (Delaware)
6. Margaret Rose Henry
7. Bethany Hall-Long
8. Brian Bushweller

Republican

1. David G. Lawson
2. Colin Bonini

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

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

1. John Potter (Delaware)
2. Gwendolyn Jones
3. Bryan Lintz
4. Marcia Groff
5. James Christina
6. Catherine Samardza
7. Robert Clark (Delaware)
8. Michael Tedesco
9. Brad Thomas (Delaware)

House

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

Delaware State House Election Results

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

Delaware House of Representatives
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	26	27
	Republican Party	15	14
Total		41	41

What You'll See on This Page

This page displays the following lists of candidates

• Incumbents who ran on November 6
• Newly elected representatives
• List of all winners
• Unopposed candidates
• Third party candidates

State House Overview

• All 41 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 were on the November 6 general election ballot:

1. Stephanie Bolden
2. Helene Keeley
3. Gerald Brady
4. Melanie George Smith
5. Debra Heffernan
6. Bryon Short
7. S. Quinton Johnson
8. Rebecca Walker
9. Dennis E. Williams
10. Deborah Hudson
11. John Mitchell Jr. (Delaware)
12. Peter Schwartzkopf
13. Valerie Longhurst
14. James Johnson (Delaware)
15. Michael Mulrooney
16. Michael Barbieri
17. Michael Ramone
18. Joseph Miro
19. Edward Osienski
20. John Kowalko
21. John Viola
22. Earl Jaques Jr.
23. Lincoln D. Willis
24. William Outten
25. Darryl Scott
26. Harold Peterman
27. Donald Blakey
28. David Wilson (Delaware)
29. Harvey Kenton
30. Ruth Briggs King
31. Daniel Short
32. John Atkins (Delaware)
33. William Carson Jr.

New Representatives and General Election Winners

Newly elected representatives

The following lists the newly-elected members of the Delaware House of Representatives:

Democratic

1. Charles Potter Jr.
2. Kimberly Williams
3. Paul Baumbach
4. Trey Charles Paradee
5. Andria Bennett

Republican

1. Timothy Dukes (Delaware)
2. Ronald Gray (Delaware)
3. Stephen Smyk
4. Jeffrey Spiegelman

Candidates who won election

The following lists all candidates elected to the Delaware House of Representatives in 2012:

Democratic

1. Stephanie Bolden
2. Helene Keeley
3. Gerald Brady
4. Melanie George Smith
5. Debra Heffernan
6. Bryon Short
7. S. Quinton Johnson
8. Rebecca Walker
9. Dennis E. Williams
10. John Mitchell Jr. (Delaware)
11. Peter Schwartzkopf
12. Valerie Longhurst
13. James Johnson (Delaware)
14. Michael Mulrooney
15. Michael Barbieri
16. Edward Osienski
17. John Kowalko
18. John Viola
19. Earl Jaques Jr.
20. Darryl Scott
21. John Atkins (Delaware)
22. Charles Potter Jr.
23. Kimberly Williams
24. Paul Baumbach
25. Trey Charles Paradee
26. Andria Bennett
27. William Carson Jr.

Republican

1. Deborah Hudson
2. Michael Ramone
3. Joseph Miro
4. William Outten
5. Harold Peterman
6. Donald Blakey
7. David Wilson (Delaware)
8. Harvey Kenton
9. Ruth Briggs King
10. Daniel Short
11. Timothy Dukes (Delaware)
12. Ronald Gray (Delaware)
13. Stephen Smyk
14. Jeffrey Spiegelman

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic

1. Stephanie Bolden
2. Helene Keeley
3. Gerald Brady
4. Melanie George Smith
5. Rebecca Walker
6. John Mitchell Jr. (Delaware)
7. James Johnson (Delaware)
8. Michael Barbieri
9. Edward Osienski
10. John Kowalko
11. John Viola
12. Earl Jaques Jr.
13. Charles Potter Jr.

Republican

1. Deborah Hudson
2. Michael Ramone
3. David Wilson (Delaware)
4. Harvey Kenton
5. Daniel Short

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

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

1. Margaret McKeown (Delaware)
2. Margaret Melson
3. Valerie Valeska
4. Ronnie L. Fitzgerald, Jr.
5. Robert Wilson (Delaware)
6. Amy Merlino
7. Douglas Beatty
8. John Machurek
9. Gordon Smith (Delaware)

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

National Partisan Trends

The following tables 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 incumbents defeated 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:	36	59	3	1	41	56	1	1