Wisconsin 2012 legislative election results

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

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

Wisconsin State Senate Election Results

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

Wisconsin State Senate
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	17	15
	Republican Party	15	18
	Vacancy	1	0
Total		33	33

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 16 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. Robert Cowles
2. Lena Taylor
3. Sheila Harsdorf
4. Luther Olsen
5. Mark Miller (Wisconsin)
6. Jessica King (Wisconsin)
7. Robert Wirch
8. Julie Lassa
9. Fred Risser
10. Mary Lazich
11. Dave Hansen (Wisconsin)
12. Jennifer Shilling

New State Senators and General Election Winners

Newly elected senators

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

Democratic

Results will display after the election on November 6.

Republican

1. Tom Tiffany

Candidates who won election

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

Democratic

1. Lena Taylor
2. Mark Miller (Wisconsin)
3. Robert Wirch
4. Julie Lassa
5. Fred Risser
6. Dave Hansen (Wisconsin)
7. Jennifer Shilling

Republican

1. Robert Cowles
2. Sheila Harsdorf
3. Tom Tiffany
4. Luther Olsen
5. Mary Lazich

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic

1. Lena Taylor
2. Mark Miller (Wisconsin)
3. Fred Risser

Republican

1. Robert Cowles

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

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

1. Koby Schellenger

House

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

Wisconsin State House Election Results

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

Wisconsin State Assembly
Party		As of November 5, 2012	After the 2012 Election
	Democratic Party	39	39
	Republican Party	58	60
	Independent	1	0
	Vacancy	1	0
Total		99	99

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 99 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. Garey Bies
2. Alvin Ott
3. Gary Tauchen
4. Dale Kooyenga
5. Leon Young
6. Jon Richards
7. Christine Sinicki
8. Mark Honadel
9. Don Pridemore
10. Jim Ott
11. Steven Kestell
12. John Murtha (Wisconsin)
13. Jeffrey Mursau
14. Kevin Petersen (Wisconsin)
15. Joan Ballweg
16. Keith Ripp
17. Evan Wynn
18. Joe Knilans
19. Gary Hebl
20. Ed Brooks
21. Gordon Hintz
22. Daniel LeMahieu
23. Samantha Kerkman
24. John Steinbrink
25. Robin Vos
26. Peter Barca
27. Kathy Bernier
28. Scott Suder
29. Nick Milroy
30. Roger Rivard
31. Fred Clark
32. Jeffrey Stone (Wisconsin)
33. Mary Williams (Wisconsin)
34. John Nygren
35. Lee Nerison
36. Bill Kramer
37. Paul Farrow
38. Josh Zepnick
39. Sandy Pasch
40. Frederick Kessler
41. Dean Kaufert
42. Stephen Nass
43. Amy Vruwink

New Representatives and General Election Winners

Newly elected representatives

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

Democratic

1. Robb Kahl

Republican

1. Rob Swearingen
2. John Jagler

Candidates who won election

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

Democratic

1. Josh Zepnick
2. Sandy Pasch
3. Frederick Kessler
4. Leon Young
5. Jon Richards
6. Christine Sinicki
7. Gary Hebl
8. Robb Kahl
9. Gordon Hintz
10. Peter Barca
11. Nick Milroy
12. Fred Clark
13. Amy Vruwink

Republican

1. Garey Bies
2. Alvin Ott
3. Gary Tauchen
4. Dale Kooyenga
5. Mark Honadel
6. Don Pridemore
7. Steven Kestell
8. John Murtha (Wisconsin)
9. Rob Swearingen
10. Jeffrey Mursau
11. John Jagler
12. Kevin Petersen (Wisconsin)
13. Keith Ripp
14. Joan Ballweg
15. Ed Brooks
16. Dean Kaufert
17. Daniel LeMahieu
18. Samantha Kerkman
19. Robin Vos
20. Kathy Bernier
21. Scott Suder
22. Jeffrey Stone (Wisconsin)
23. Mary Williams (Wisconsin)
24. John Nygren
25. Lee Nerison
26. Bill Kramer
27. Paul Farrow
28. Stephen Nass
29. Jim Ott

Competitiveness

Unopposed candidates in general election

The following candidates did not face major party competition:

Democratic

1. Leon Young
2. Jon Richards
3. Peter Barca
4. Nick Milroy
5. Josh Zepnick
6. Frederick Kessler
7. Sandy Pasch

Republican

1. Kevin Petersen (Wisconsin)
2. Daniel LeMahieu
3. Don Pridemore

Ballot Access

Third party candidates

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

1. Anthony Edwards (Wisconsin)
2. Melba Morris-Page
3. Terry Virgil
4. David Stolow
5. Todd Albano
6. Kevin Fitzpatrick
7. Patrick Tjugum
8. Leroy Watson
9. Terry Gray
10. Ben Olson (Wisconsin)
11. Rich Martin
12. Jonathan Dedering
13. Carl Skalitzky
14. Jim Maas
15. Frank Mooney
16. Eric Bahr
17. Thomas Perry

National Partisan Trends

2012 Legislative Election Results
State-by-State Analysis
Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Maine Massachusetts • Michigan• Minnesota • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming
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