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New Jersey's 9th Congressional District elections, 2012
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November 6, 2012 |
June 5, 2012 |
Bill Pascrell  |
Steve Rothman |
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The 9th Congressional District of New Jersey held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Democratic candidate Bill Pascrell won the election.[1]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: New Jersey had a mostly closed primary system, in which registered Republicans and Democrats could only vote in their own party's primary, but voters who had never voted in a primary before could choose either party.
Voter registration: Voters had to register to vote in the primary by March 11, 2012. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 16, 2012.[2]
- See also: New Jersey elections, 2012
Incumbent: Heading into the election was incumbent Steve Rothman (D), who was first elected to the House in 1996.
Politico rated the 9th District race between incumbents Steve Rothman and Bill Pascrell the top of the five ugliest member vs. member battles,[3] and the North Jersey Record labeled it one of the most competitive primaries of 2012.[4]
This was the first election using district maps based on data from the 2010 Census. New Jersey's 9th Congressional District was located in the northeastern portion of the state and included parts of Bergen, Pasaic, and Hudson counties.[5]
Candidates
Note: Election results were added on election night as races were called. Vote totals were added after official election results had been certified. Click here for more information about Ballotpedia's election coverage plan. Please contact us about errors in this list.
General election candidates
June 5, 2012, primary results
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Election results
General Election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Bill Pascrell Incumbent |
74% | 162,822 | |
| Republican | Shmuley Boteach | 25% | 55,091 | |
| Independent | E. David Smith | 0.5% | 1,138 | |
| Independent | Jeanette Woolsey | 0.5% | 1,082 | |
| Total Votes | 220,133 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Democratic Primary
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Bill Pascrell Incumbent |
61.2% | 31,435 |
| Steve Rothman Incumbent | 38.8% | 19,947 |
| Total Votes | 51,382 | |
Republican Primary
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Shmuley Boteach |
57.9% | 5,364 |
| Blase Billack | 13.8% | 1,278 |
| Hector Castillo | 28.3% | 2,623 |
| Total Votes | 9,265 | |
Impact of redistricting
- See also: Redistricting in New Jersey
New Jersey lost a congressional seat following the results of the 2010 Census, bringing its number of representatives down to 12. A new map was approved on December 23, 2011. Under the new map, Steve Rothman's old 9th District had been split between Republican Scott Garrett's 5th District and Democrat Bill Pascrell's 8th District. Rothman chose to run against his fellow Democrat in a largely Democratic 9th District rather than face Garrett in the Republican-favored 5th.[10]
The 9th District was re-drawn after the 2010 Census. The new district was composed of the following percentages of voters of the old congressional districts.[11][12]
- 4 percent from the 5th Congressional District
- 38 percent from the 8th Congressional District
- 58 percent from the 9th Congressional District
Registration statistics
As of October 25, 2012, District 9 had the following partisan registration breakdown according to the New Jersey Secretary of State:
| New Jersey Congressional District 9[13] | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Congressional District | District Total | Democrats | Republicans | Other & Unaffiliated | Advantage | Party Advantage | Change in Advantage from 2010 |
| District 9 | 382,038 | 136,426 | 51,595 | 194,017 | Democratic | 164.42% | -6.36% |
| "Party advantage" is the percentage gap between the two major parties in registered voters. "Change in advantage" is the spread in difference of party advantage between 2010 and 2012 based on the congressional district number only. | |||||||
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. New Jersey's 9th District became more democratic because of redistricting.[14]
- 2012: 61D / 39R
- 2010: 60D / 40R
Cook Political Report's PVI
In 2012, Cook Political Report released its updated figures on the Partisan Voter Index, which measured each congressional district's partisanship relative to the rest of the country. New Jersey's 9th Congressional District had a PVI of D+11, which was the 93rd most Democratic district in the country. In 2008, this district was won by Barack Obama (D), 65-35 percent over John McCain (R). In 2004, John Kerry (D) won the district 60-40 percent over George W. Bush (R).[15]
Campaign issues
Ideological similarities
According to Roll Call, there was little policy or ideological difference between Democrats Bill Pascrell and Steve Rothman, so voters were left to decide the primary largely based on personality and location. The newly drawn 9th District encompassed a variety of demographics, and, the Roll Call article states, Pascrell was strong in the working class Passaic County, while Rothman was more at home in the white-collar Bergen County. The 9th also includes Hudson County, which may go either way.[16]
Although the representatives' voting records matched 98 percent of the time, the two candidates sought to differentiate themselves. Rothman cast himself as the more progressive candidate, while Pascrell stood as the pragmatic Democrat.[17]
TV ads
Steve Rothman came under criticism for a TV ad his campaign ran against Bill Pascrell. The New Jersey Star-Ledger editorial board wrote that Rothman made "cheap shots" against Pascrell, and said a fact-check showed the ad's claims were false.[18]
Endorsements
Former president Bill Clinton endorsed Pascrell.[19] President Barack Obama met with Rothman, which was viewed as implicit support, although he did not officially endorse either candidate in the race.[20] The Clinton-Pascrell endorsement and Obama-Rothman support reflected 2008, when Pascrell endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination and Rothman was among Obama's early supporters.[20]
Debates
February 23, 2012
On February 23, 2012, Democratic opponents Bill Pascrell and Steve Rothman, both incumbents pitted against each other as a result of redistricting, met for their first debate.[21]
Israel
In early 2012, a group of New Jersey synagogues encouraged their members to vote for Rothman in the primary, citing his pro-Israel stance. This prompted American Arab Forum President Aref Assaf to write an Op-Ed against what he described as putting another country above the U.S. in voting decisions. Rothman responded that he does put America first, and Pascrell distanced himself from Assaf's comments.[22]
Campaign donors
Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2012 elections season. Below are the candidates' reports.[23][24]
Bill Pascrell
| Bill Pascrell Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[25] | April 15, 2012 | $1,496,016.62 | $517,170.74 | $(441,510.90) | $1,571,676.46 | ||||
| Pre-primary[26] | May 24, 2012 | $1,571,676.46 | $269,262.22 | $(1,134,529.74) | $706,408.94 | ||||
| July Quarterly[27] | July 15, 2012 | $706,408.94 | $417,051.15 | $(868,716.65) | $254,743.44 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $1,203,484.11 | $(2,444,757.29) | ||||||||
Shmuley Boteach
| Shmuley Boteach Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[28] | April 15 | $0.00 | $90,470.33 | $(16,279.77) | $74,190.56 | ||||
| Pre-primary[29] | May 24, 2012 | $74,190.56 | $45,593.00 | $(25,478.96) | $94,304.60 | ||||
| July Quarterly[30] | July 15 | $94,304.60 | $47,778.00 | $(84,479.87) | $57,602.73 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $183,841.33 | $(126,238.6) | ||||||||
Race background
Politico rated the 9th District race between incumbents Steve Rothman and Bill Pascrell the top of the five ugliest member vs. member battles,[3] and the North Jersey Record labeled it one of the most competitive primaries of 2012.[31]
Former friends Steve Rothman and Bill Pascrell were pitted against each other in a primary battle for the Democratic spot in the general election.[3] In December 2011, a bipartisan redistricting panel finalized a map that put Rothman in Republican-friendly district along with Scott Garrett (R). Rather than face off against Garrett, Rothman decided to run in the same district as Democratic incumbent Pascrell, reasoning that he previously represented more of the new district than Pascrell.[3] Pascrell accused Rothman of "running from fights with the radical right."[3]
District history
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2010
On November 2, 2010, Steve Rothman was re-elected to the United States House for an eighth term. He defeated Michael A. Agosta (R) and Patricia Alessandrini (Green).[32]
| United States House, New Jersey General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Steve Rothman Incumbent |
60.7% | 83,564 | |
| Republican | Michael A. Agosta | 37.8% | 52,082 | |
| Green | Patricia Alessandrini | 1.4% | 1,980 | |
| Total Votes | 137,626 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in New Jersey, 2012
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2012
- United States Senate elections in New Jersey, 2012
Footnotes
- ↑ Politico, "2012 House Race Results," accessed November 6, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Department of State, "Voter Registration Information," accessed June 30, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Politico, "Congress 2012: The 5 ugliest member vs. member battles" accessed April 18, 2012
- ↑ North Jersey.com, "Harrison: New Jersey's competitive primaries," April 22, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Redistricting Map, "Map" accessed September 25, 2012
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Examiner "Another Democratic primary matchup to watch," January 13, 2012
- ↑ NJ.com "Celebrity rabbi from Englewood mulling Republican run for Congress," February 3, 2012
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 NJ.gov "U.S. Senate Primary Candidates," accessed April 2, 2012
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 NJ.gov "Candidate List" accessed on September 19, 2012
- ↑ NJ.com, "Rep. Steve Rothman to challenge Rep. Bill Pascrell in June Democratic primary," accessed December 30, 2011
- ↑ Moonshadow Mobile's CensusViewer, "New Jersey's congressional districts 2001-2011 comparison"
- ↑ Labels & Lists, "VoterMapping software voter counts"
- ↑ New Jersey Secretary of State, "Congressional Voter Registration Statistics," May 22, 2012
- ↑ FairVote, "2011 Redistricting and 2012 Elections in New Jersey," September 2012
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" accessed October 28, 2012
- ↑ Roll Call, "N.J. 9th District race pits county vs. county," May 7, 2012
- ↑ Philadelphia Inquirer, "New Jersey Ninth District Democratic primary quickly 'headed into the toilet,'" May 31, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Star-Ledger, "With cheap shots at Pascrell, Rothman tarnishes his own integrity," May 14, 2012
- ↑ The Hill, "Clinton backs Rep. Pascrell over Rep. Rothman in NJ's Dem primary," May 4, 2012
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Huffington Post, "Steve Rothman Meets With Obama, But POTUS Doesn't Endorse Him," June 1, 2012
- ↑ [Two New Jersey incumbents thrown together by redistricting hold debate]
- ↑ PolitickerNJ "Politics in Pascrell v. Rothman spills into religion," February 24, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Bill Pascrell Summary Report," accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Shmuley Boteach Summary Report," accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Bill Pascrell April Quarterly" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Bill Pascrell Pre-primary" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Bill Pascrell July Quarterly" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Shmuley Boteach April Quarterly" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Shmuley Boteach Pre-primary" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Shmuley Boteach July Quarterly" accessed October 11, 2012
- ↑ North Jersey.com, "Harrison: New Jersey's competitive primaries," April 22, 2012
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
