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Michigan's 11th congressional district election was held on November 6, 2012, for a seat in the113th United States Congress alongside a presidential election, other elections to theUnited States House of Representatives and elections for class I of theUnited States Senate. InMichigan, all of the state's14 congressional seats were at stake. Michigan's juniorUnited States SenatorDebbie Stabenow isrunning for re-election. Additionally, all 110 seats in theMichigan House of Representatives were at stake.
In reapportionment done following the2010 United States census, the district was redrawn to favor thenCongressmanThaddeus McCotter.[1]
The election was held alongside aspecial election to fill a vacancy inMichigan's 11th congressional district caused by the July 6, 2012 resignation ofRepublican member of theUnited States House of RepresentativesThaddeus McCotter.[2] The primary for the special election was held on September 5, 2012.[3]
After a failed, short-livedpresidential campaign, McCotter opted to run for 6th term in the House. On May 25, 2012, it was announced that McCotter had fallen short of the required 1,000 signatures to appear on the ballot for the August 7 GOP primary.[4]
On May 29, 2012, McCotter announced his intentions to seek the GOP nomination as write-in candidate.[5] McCotter ended his write-in campaign shortly after on June 2, 2012.[6]
McCotter resigned from Congress on July 6, 2012. On August 11, 2012,Michigan Attorney GeneralBill Schuette announced charges against four former McCotter staff aides, for their roles in obtaining and submitting fraudulent election petitions.[7]
After McCotter's resignation, the only other Republican who qualified for the primary ballot was political novice/Tea Party activistKerry Bentivolio.
After McCotter's resignation, several candidates considered mounting a write-in campaign, including Birmingham-based foreclosure attorneyDavid Trott, former state Rep. Andrew "Rocky" Raczkowski, state Sen. Mike Kowall of White Lake and former Oakland County Republican Party Chairman Paul Welday.[8] Eventually, State GOP leaders rallied around formerstate Sen.Nancy Cassis.[8]
Declined/Withdrew
Disqualified from Ballot
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Kerry Bentivolio | 42,468 | 65.5 | N/A | |
| Republican | Total Write-In | 22,490 | 34.5 | N/A | |
Only two candidates, both with low name recognition qualified for the Democratic primary ballot before McCotter's resignation. They were Dr. Syed Taj, a member of the Canton Township Board of Trustees and Bill Roberts, a Lyndon LaRouche activist whose main goal was toimpeachPresidentBarack Obama and campaigned with posters with Obama having a mustache similar toAdolf Hitler.[10]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Syed Taj | 21,952 | 58.9 | N/A | |
| Democratic | Bill Roberts | 15,338 | 41.1 | N/A | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Kerry Bentivolio | 181,788 | 50.8 | N/A | |
| Democratic | Syed Taj | 158,879 | 44.4 | N/A | |
| Libertarian | John Tatar | 9,637 | 2.7 | N/A | |
| Green | Steven Duke | 4,569 | 1.3 | N/A | |
| Natural Law | Daniel Johnson | 3,251 | 0.9 | N/A | |
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