Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District election, 2016
2018 →
← 2014
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November 8, 2016 |
August 9, 2016 |
Mark Pocan  |
Mark Pocan |
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Cook Political Report: Solid D[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe D[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe D[3] |
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The 2nd Congressional District of Wisconsin held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Democratic. Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) defeated Peter Theron (R) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Neither candidate faced a primary opponent in August.[4][5]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Wisconsin utilizes an open primary system; registered voters do not have to be members of a party to vote in that party's primary.[6]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Incumbent: Heading into the election, the incumbent was Mark Pocan (D), who was first elected in 2012.
As of the 2010 redistricting cycle, Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District included Dane, Green, Iowa, Sauk, and Lafayette counties and parts of Richland and Rock counties.[7]
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Mark Pocan Incumbent |
68.8% | 273,537 | |
| Republican | Peter Theron | 31.2% | 124,044 | |
| Total Votes | 397,581 | |||
| Source: Wisconsin Elections Commission | ||||
Candidates
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General election candidates: Mark Pocan   Peter Theron |
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Primary candidates:[8] |
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Democratic |
Republican |
District history
2014
The 2nd Congressional District of Wisconsin held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) defeated Peter Theron (R) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mark Pocan Incumbent |
68.4% | 224,920 | |
| Republican | Peter Theron | 31.5% | 103,619 | |
| N/A | Scattering | 0.1% | 308 | |
| Total Votes | 328,847 | |||
| Source: Wisconsin Government Accountability Board | ||||
2012
The 2nd Congressional District of Wisconsin held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Democrat Mark Pocan won the election in the district.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mark Pocan |
67.9% | 265,422 | |
| Republican | Chad Lee | 31.9% | 124,683 | |
| Independent | Joe Kopsick | 0% | 6 | |
| Miscellaneous | N/A | 0.2% | 787 | |
| Total Votes | 390,898 | |||
| Source: "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Wisconsin elections, 2016
The calendar below listed important dates for political candidates in Wisconsin in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| January 5, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for candidates to file nomination papers, declarations of candidacy and campaign registration statements for the spring election | |
| January 15, 2016 | Campaign finance | January continuing report due | |
| February 8, 2016 | Campaign finance | Spring pre-primary report due | |
| March 28, 2016 | Campaign finance | Spring pre-election report due | |
| June 1, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for candidates to file nomination papers, declarations of candidacy and campaign registration statements for the general election | |
| July 15, 2016 | Campaign finance | July continuing report due | |
| August 1, 2016 | Campaign finance | Fall partisan primary report due | |
| August 9, 2016 | Election date | State partisan primary election | |
| September 27, 2016 | Campaign finance | Fourth Tuesday in September report due | |
| October 31, 2016 | Campaign finance | Fall general election report due | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| Sources: Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Calendar of Election and Campaign Events," accessed January 11, 2016 Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "New Campaign Finance Laws Effective January 1, 2016," December 21, 2015 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Wisconsin, 2016
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 House Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 House," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "House Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Candidate Tracking by Office," accessed June 2, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Wisconsin House Primaries Results," August 9, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin State Legislature, "Wis. Stat. § 5.62," accessed September 16, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed July 24, 2012
- ↑ Candidates are listed by party and alphabetically within each party.
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Wisconsin," accessed November 11, 2012
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
