2012 United States presidential election in Minnesota Turnout 76.42%[ 1] County results Congressional district results Precinct results Obama
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90–100%
Romney
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90–100%
Tie/No Data
The2012 United States presidential election in Minnesota took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus theDistrict of Columbia participated. State voters chose ten electors to represent them in theElectoral College via a popular vote pittingincumbent DFL President Barack Obama and his running mate,Vice President Joe Biden , againstRepublican challenger and formerMassachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate,Congressman Paul Ryan .
Minnesota backed Obama for re-election, giving him 52.65% of the vote, while Republican challenger Mitt Romney took 44.96%, a victory margin of 7.69%. With ten Democratic wins in a row, Minnesota has the longest current streak of voting for the Democratic candidate in presidential elections of any state, having not voted Republican sinceRichard Nixon in1972 . This is the longest streak for the Democrats in history amongst non-Southern states.[ 2]
However, Romney was able to significantly improve on McCain's performance in Minnesota, as he did nationally. Fourteen counties that voted for Obama in2008 flipped and voted for the Republican Party in 2012, while many Democratic counties had a margin of victory much narrower than in 2008.Big Stone County voted Republican for the first time since 1980, and Pine County since 1972. Obama thus became the first Democrat to win theWhite House without carrying Big Stone County sinceGrover Cleveland in1892 .[ 3] Red Lake County , as well as the first to do so without carryingLincoln ,Marshall ,Pennington , orPolk Counties sinceWoodrow Wilson in1912 , the first to do so without carryingGrant orPine Counties sinceWoodrow Wilson in1916 .
As of the2024 presidential election , this is the last time the Democratic candidate won the following counties:Beltrami ,Chippewa ,Fillmore ,Freeborn ,Houston ,Itasca ,Kittson ,Koochiching ,Lac qui Parle ,Mahnomen ,Mower ,Norman ,Rice ,Swift , andTraverse , or won a majority of congressional districts in the state.
Democratic caucuses [ edit ] 2012Minnesota Democratic presidential caucus February 7, 2012 (2012-02-07 )
County results
Barack Obama
No votes
2012 Minnesota Democratic caucus[ 4] Candidate Votes Percentage Delegates Barack Obama (incumbent) 16,733 96.30% 91 Uncommitted 643 3.70% 0
Republican caucuses [ edit ] 2012Minnesota Republican presidential caucus February 7, 2012 (2012-02-07 )
County resultsSantorum: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%Paul: 30–40% 50–60%Tie: 30–40%
The Republican caucuses were held on February 7, 2012.[ 5] Colorado Republican caucuses as well as theMissouri Republican primary .Minnesota has a total of 40 delegates, 37 of which are tied to the caucuses while 3 are unpledged RNC delegates. The non-binding straw poll was won byRick Santorum , butRon Paul won 32 of the 40 delegates to theRepublican National Convention .
There is no formal system of allocating delegates to candidates in any step of the election process. At each meeting the participants decides what the best course of action is. The state convention can vote to bind the 13 at-large delegates to a candidate. The 24 delegates elected at the CD conventions and the 3 automatic (RNC) delegates are not legally bound to vote for a candidate.
17 February - 31 March: BPOU conventions elect delegates to the state convention and the congressional district conventions. 14–21 April: Eight congressional conventions elect 3 National Convention delegates each. 18–19 May: State convention elect 13 National Convention delegates.[ 11]
2012 United States presidential election in Minnesota[ 19] Party Candidate Running mate Votes Percentage Electoral votes Democratic (DFL) Barack Obama (incumbent) Joe Biden (incumbent) 1,546,167 52.65% 10 Republican Mitt Romney Paul Ryan 1,320,225 44.96% 0 Libertarian Gary Johnson Jim Gray 35,098 1.20% 0 Green Jill Stein Cheri Honkala 13,023 0.44% 0 Constitution Virgil Goode Jim Clymer 3,722 0.13% 0 Grassroots Jim Carlson George McMahon 3,149 0.11% 0 Justice Rocky Anderson Luis J. Rodriguez 1,996 0.07% 0 Constitutional Government Dean Morstad Josh Franke-Hyland 1,092 0.04% 0 Socialist Workers James Harris Maura DeLuca 1,051 0.04% 0 Socialism and Liberation Peta Lindsay Yari Osorio 397 0.01% 0 Write-Ins 10,641 0.36% 0 Totals 2,936,561 100.00% 10 Voter turnout (eligible voters) 75.74%
County Barack Obama Mitt Romney Various candidates Margin Total votes cast # % # % # % # % Aitkin 4,412 48.26% 4,533 49.58% 197 2.16% -121 -1.32% 9,142 Anoka 88,614 47.52% 93,430 50.11% 4,421 2.37% -4,816 -2.59% 186,465 Becker 6,829 41.69% 9,204 56.18% 349 2.13% -2,375 -14.49% 16,382 Beltrami 11,818 53.59% 9,637 43.70% 596 2.71% 2,181 9.89% 22,051 Benton 8,173 41.66% 10,849 55.30% 597 3.04% -2,676 -13.64% 19,619 Big Stone 1,345 48.23% 1,385 49.66% 59 2.11% -40 -1.43% 2,789 Blue Earth 18,164 53.00% 14,916 43.52% 1,194 3.48% 3,248 9.48% 34,274 Brown 5,630 40.42% 7,938 56.99% 361 2.59% -2,308 -16.57% 13,929 Carlton 11,389 61.78% 6,586 35.72% 461 2.50% 4,803 26.06% 18,436 Carver 20,745 39.22% 31,155 58.90% 999 1.88% -10,410 -19.68% 52,899 Cass 6,858 42.49% 8,957 55.49% 326 2.02% -2,099 -13.00% 16,141 Chippewa 3,083 49.72% 2,967 47.85% 151 2.43% 116 1.87% 6,201 Chisago 12,524 42.54% 16,227 55.12% 690 2.34% -3,703 -12.58% 29,441 Clay 15,208 52.65% 12,920 44.73% 758 2.62% 2,288 7.92% 28,886 Clearwater 1,753 41.77% 2,359 56.21% 85 2.02% -606 -14.44% 4,197 Cook 1,993 59.99% 1,221 36.75% 108 3.26% 772 23.24% 3,322 Cottonwood 2,433 41.50% 3,316 56.57% 113 1.93% -883 -15.07% 5,862 Crow Wing 14,760 42.27% 19,415 55.60% 745 2.13% -4,655 -13.33% 34,920 Dakota 116,255 50.37% 109,516 47.45% 5,050 2.18% 6,739 2.92% 230,821 Dodge 4,487 43.45% 5,522 53.47% 318 3.08% -1,035 -10.02% 10,327 Douglas 8,653 41.30% 11,884 56.72% 416 1.98% -3,231 -15.42% 20,953 Faribault 3,407 44.17% 4,104 53.21% 202 2.62% -697 -9.04% 7,713 Fillmore 5,713 52.45% 4,913 45.11% 266 2.44% 800 7.34% 10,892 Freeborn 9,326 55.82% 6,969 41.72% 411 2.46% 2,357 14.10% 16,706 Goodhue 12,212 47.33% 12,986 50.33% 603 2.34% -774 -3.00% 25,801 Grant 1,647 47.23% 1,748 50.13% 92 2.64% -101 -2.90% 3,487 Hennepin 423,982 62.34% 240,073 35.30% 16,010 2.36% 183,909 27.04% 680,065 Houston 5,281 50.56% 4,951 47.40% 214 2.04% 330 3.16% 10,446 Hubbard 4,676 40.59% 6,622 57.48% 222 1.93% -1,946 -16.89% 11,520 Isanti 8,024 39.69% 11,675 57.75% 518 2.56% -3,651 -18.06% 20,217 Itasca 12,852 53.73% 10,501 43.90% 566 2.37% 2,351 9.83% 23,919 Jackson 2,268 41.77% 3,044 56.06% 118 2.17% -776 -14.29% 5,430 Kanabec 3,593 44.09% 4,328 53.10% 229 2.81% -735 -9.01% 8,150 Kandiyohi 9,805 45.68% 11,240 52.36% 420 1.96% -1,435 -6.68% 21,465 Kittson 1,241 51.28% 1,095 45.25% 84 3.47% 146 6.03% 2,420 Koochiching 3,451 53.44% 2,841 43.99% 166 2.57% 610 9.45% 6,458 Lac qui Parle 1,974 49.55% 1,938 48.64% 72 1.81% 36 0.91% 3,984 Lake 4,043 59.28% 2,610 38.27% 167 2.45% 1,433 21.01% 6,820 Lake of the Woods 859 38.45% 1,306 58.46% 69 3.09% -447 -20.01% 2,234 Le Sueur 6,753 45.64% 7,715 52.15% 327 2.21% -962 -6.51% 14,795 Lincoln 1,429 45.80% 1,595 51.12% 96 3.08% -166 -5.32% 3,120 Lyon 5,465 44.12% 6,594 53.23% 329 2.65% -1,129 -9.11% 12,388 Mahnomen 1,276 58.48% 871 39.92% 35 1.60% 405 18.56% 2,182 Marshall 1,998 42.53% 2,569 54.68% 131 2.79% -571 -12.15% 4,698 Martin 4,054 36.96% 6,657 60.69% 257 2.35% -2,603 -23.73% 10,968 McLeod 6,968 37.56% 11,069 59.66% 516 2.78% -4,101 -22.10% 18,553 Meeker 4,969 40.68% 6,913 56.60% 332 2.72% -1,944 -15.92% 12,214 Mille Lacs 5,829 44.53% 6,951 53.10% 311 2.37% -1,122 -8.57% 13,091 Morrison 6,153 36.81% 10,159 60.78% 402 2.41% -4,006 -23.97% 16,714 Mower 11,129 60.03% 6,938 37.42% 472 2.55% 4,191 22.61% 18,539 Murray 2,160 45.31% 2,504 52.53% 103 2.16% -344 -7.22% 4,767 Nicollet 9,652 52.58% 8,214 44.75% 491 2.67% 1,438 7.83% 18,357 Nobles 3,793 44.52% 4,581 53.77% 146 1.71% -788 -9.25% 8,520 Norman 1,730 53.94% 1,384 43.16% 93 2.90% 346 10.78% 3,207 Olmsted 39,338 50.23% 36,832 47.03% 2,146 2.74% 2,506 3.20% 78,316 Otter Tail 12,165 38.41% 18,860 59.55% 645 2.04% -6,695 -21.14% 31,670 Pennington 3,024 46.40% 3,305 50.71% 188 2.89% -281 -4.31% 6,517 Pine 6,750 48.34% 6,845 49.02% 370 2.64% -95 -0.68% 13,965 Pipestone 1,725 37.13% 2,826 60.83% 95 2.04% -1,101 -23.70% 4,646 Polk 6,773 46.10% 7,615 51.83% 305 2.07% -842 -5.73% 14,693 Pope 2,981 47.73% 3,142 50.30% 123 1.97% -161 -2.57% 6,246 Ramsey 184,938 66.33% 86,800 31.13% 7,084 2.54% 98,138 35.20% 278,822 Red Lake 928 46.99% 978 49.52% 69 3.49% -50 -2.53% 1,975 Redwood 3,008 38.61% 4,570 58.66% 212 2.73% -1,562 -20.05% 7,790 Renville 3,394 44.02% 4,149 53.81% 167 2.17% -755 -9.79% 7,710 Rice 17,054 52.85% 14,384 44.58% 829 2.57% 2,670 8.27% 32,267 Rock 1,946 40.16% 2,810 57.99% 90 1.85% -864 -17.83% 4,846 Roseau 2,772 37.70% 4,409 59.97% 171 2.33% -1,637 -22.27% 7,352 St. Louis 73,378 63.48% 39,131 33.85% 3,085 2.67% 34,247 29.63% 115,594 Scott 29,712 41.47% 40,323 56.28% 1,612 2.25% -10,611 -14.81% 71,647 Sherburne 17,597 37.84% 27,848 59.88% 1,064 2.28% -10,251 -22.04% 46,509 Sibley 2,916 37.31% 4,693 60.05% 206 2.64% -1,777 -22.74% 7,815 Stearns 33,551 42.75% 43,015 54.81% 1,911 2.44% -9,464 -12.06% 78,477 Steele 8,706 45.52% 9,903 51.78% 515 2.70% -1,197 -6.26% 19,124 Stevens 2,742 48.51% 2,766 48.94% 144 2.55% -24 -0.43% 5,652 Swift 2,751 53.74% 2,248 43.91% 120 2.35% 503 9.83% 5,119 Todd 4,819 40.83% 6,719 56.93% 265 2.24% -1,900 -16.10% 11,803 Traverse 943 51.06% 861 46.62% 43 2.32% 82 4.44% 1,847 Wabasha 5,415 46.03% 6,049 51.42% 299 2.55% -634 -5.39% 11,763 Wadena 2,492 36.70% 4,143 61.01% 156 2.29% -1,651 -24.31% 6,791 Waseca 4,370 44.83% 5,116 52.49% 261 2.68% -746 -7.66% 9,747 Washington 70,203 49.39% 69,137 48.64% 2,793 1.97% 1,066 0.75% 142,133 Watonwan 2,494 48.48% 2,517 48.93% 133 2.59% -23 -0.45% 5,144 Wilkin 1,258 39.04% 1,884 58.47% 80 2.49% -626 -19.43% 3,222 Winona 14,980 55.01% 11,480 42.16% 772 2.83% 3,500 12.85% 27,232 Wright 25,741 37.96% 40,466 59.67% 1,609 2.37% -14,725 -21.71% 67,816 Yellow Medicine 2,465 45.53% 2,806 51.83% 143 2.64% -341 -6.30% 5,414 Totals 1,546,167 52.65% 1,320,225 44.96% 70,169 2.39% 225,942 7.69% 2,936,561
County Flips:Democratic Hold
Republican Hold
Gain from Democratic
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican By congressional district [ edit ] Obama won six of eight congressional districts, including two held by Republicans. Romney won two, including one held by a Democrat.[ 20]
^ "Office of the State Of Minnesota Secretary of State" .www.sos.state.mn.us . RetrievedJuly 22, 2017 .^ "Will Vermont's 27-Cycle GOP Presidential Streak Ever Be Broken?" .Smart Politics . April 30, 2012. RetrievedJune 22, 2021 .^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections" .uselectionatlas.org . RetrievedSeptember 2, 2020 .^ "Presidential Preference by County" . Minnesota Secretary of State. Archived fromthe original on October 9, 2016. RetrievedOctober 7, 2016 .^ Scheck, Tom (September 30, 2011)."MNGOP keeping Feb. 7 Caucus date" .Capitol View . Minnesota Public Radio. ^ "Election Reporting System: Statewide Results for Republican Party" . Minnesota Secretary of State. RetrievedMarch 1, 2012 .^a b "Paul supporters chosen as delegates in three congressional districts" .Pierce County Herald . April 15, 2012. Archived fromthe original on April 19, 2012. RetrievedApril 17, 2012 .^ Anderson, Pat (April 21, 2012)."Ron Paul gets 20/24 Congressional District delegates. CD4 3, CD2 3, CD8 2, CD1 2 #mngop #mnleg" .twitter.com . Twitter. RetrievedApril 22, 2012 . ^a b "Rep. Paul supporters elected to half of Minnesota GOP convention delegation" .Pierce County Herald . April 22, 2012. Archived fromthe original on April 25, 2012. RetrievedApril 22, 2012 .^a b "Ron Paul Wins Minnesota State Convention" . RetrievedMay 20, 2012 .^ "Republican Party of Minnesota Events" . Archived fromthe original on May 17, 2012. RetrievedMay 4, 2012 .^ "Huffington Post Election Dashboard" .HuffPost the original on August 13, 2013.^ "America's Choice 2012 Election Center: CNN Electoral Map" .CNN the original on January 19, 2013.^ "Election 2012 - The Electoral Map: Building a Path to Victory" .The New York Times the original on July 8, 2012.^ "2012 Presidential Election Results" The Washington Post .Archived from the original on July 26, 2012.^ "RealClearPolitics - 2012 Election Maps - Battle for White House" . Archived fromthe original on June 8, 2011.^ "PROJECTION: OBAMA WILL LIKELY WIN SECOND TERM" .^ "Nate Silver's political calculations predict 2012 election outcome" .^ "Minnesota Secretary of State" .Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. RetrievedNovember 10, 2012 .^ "Home - Election Results" .
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