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| Turnout | 59.2% ( 4.2pp) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The2012 United States presidential election in New York took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus theDistrict of Columbia participated. Voters chose 29 electors to represent them in theElectoral College via a popular vote pittingincumbentDemocraticPresidentBarack Obama and his running mate,Vice PresidentJoe Biden, againstRepublican challenger and formerMassachusetts GovernorMitt Romney and his running mate,CongressmanPaul Ryan.
Barack Obama carried the state ofNew York by a landslide margin, winning 63.35% of the vote to Mitt Romney's 35.17%.[1] As in previous elections, the Democratic ticket easily won, for the most part due to racking up very large margins inNew York City (which itself comprised over 40% of the state's population) and its metropolitan area. The city alone garnered Obama 1,995,241 votes (81.19% of its vote), and he carried all five boroughs, after losingStaten Island (Richmond County) in2008.Putnam County, which McCain won in 2008, was the only county in the NYC metropolitan area that Obama lost toRomney. The rest of his votes mostly came fromAlbany,Buffalo,Ithaca,Rochester,Syracuse, and their respective metropolitan areas, giving him a solid 28.18% lead over Romney. Obama even won in many rural counties. The Republicans won only in some rural parts of upstate and western New York.
New York was 1 of only 6 states to swing in President Obama's favor from 2008 to 2012, giving him the largest percentage of the vote for any presidential candidate in the state since1964 and the second largest Democratic vote share in the state in history (as well as third most in the state's entire history, behindWarren Harding in1920 as well). Similar to New Jersey, some news outlets, such asThe New York Times, have proposed that Obama's improved performance in these states – as opposed to worsened performances in areas like the Rust Belt – was due to his handling ofHurricane Sandy, which made landfall on October 29.[2]Mayor of New York CityMichael Bloomberg, a Republican-turned-Independent, endorsed Obama due to the federal government's handling of the hurricane.[3]
As of the2024 presidential election, this is the last time the Democratic nominee won the following counties:Cayuga,Cortland,Franklin,Madison,Niagara,Orange,Oswego,Otsego,Richmond (Staten Island),Seneca,St. Lawrence,Suffolk,Sullivan,Warren, andWashington. This is also the last presidential election in New York in which the Democratic nominee won more counties than the Republican nominee. In subsequent elections, despite Republicans winning more counties, they have been unable to break through the huge Democratic advantage in New York City and its suburbs, ensuring that the state has remained solidly blue.
Incumbent President Barack Obama ran uncontested in the Democratic primary, and it was therefore cancelled.[4]
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 Results by county Romney: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% (Note:Italicization indicates a withdrawn candidacy) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Projected delegate count | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP | CNN | FOX | |||
 Mitt Romney | 118,912 | 62.42% | 92 | 92 | |
| Ron Paul | 27,699 | 14.54% | 0 | 0 | |
| Newt Gingrich | 23,990 | 12.59% | 1 | 0 | |
| Rick Santorum(withdrawn) | 18,997 | 9.97% | 0 | 0 | |
| Blank | 810 | 0.43% | 0 | 0 | |
| Void | 106 | 0.06% | 0 | 0 | |
| Scattering | 1 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | |
| Unprojected delegates: | 2 | 3 | 95 | ||
| Total: | 190,515 | 100.00% | 95 | 95 | 95 |
The 2012 New York Republican presidential primary took place on April 24, 2012.[6][7]
By county, Romney won a plurality in every county, and a majority in all but six:Niagara,Cattaraugus,Wyoming,Orleans,Schuyler,Herkimer andOswego.
Paul finished second in most counties. Santorum finished second inOtsego County. Gingrich finished second in two geographic areas: a cluster of counties in theCatskills andHudson Valley (Orange,Rockland,Sullivan, andWestchester) and in most of the counties ofWestern New York (Allegany,Cattaraugus,Erie,Genesee,Niagara, andWyoming), in addition to Herkimer andOneida counties.[5] Gingrich's relative strength inWestern New York, as well as in Herkimer, can be attributed to the continued popularity and efforts ofCarl Paladino, who carried those counties in the previous gubernatorial election and campaigned on Gingrich's behalf. The majority of New York politicians had endorsed Romney while the primary election was still competitive.
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Huffington Post[8] | Safe D | November 6, 2012 |
| CNN[9] | Safe D | November 6, 2012 |
| The New York Times[10] | Safe D | November 6, 2012 |
| The Washington Post'[11] | Safe D | November 6, 2012 |
| RealClearPolitics[12] | Solid D | November 6, 2012 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[13] | Solid D | November 5, 2012 |
| FiveThirtyEight[14] | Solid D | November 6, 2012 |
Write-in candidate access:
| 2012 United States presidential election in New York[15] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Running mate | Votes | Percentage | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Barack Obama | 4,337,622 | 61.25% | |||
| Working Families | Barack Obama | 148,119 | 2.09% | |||
| Total | Barack Obama(incumbent) | Joe Biden(incumbent) | 4,485,741 | 63.35% | 29 | |
| Republican | Mitt Romney | 2,228,060 | 31.46% | |||
| Conservative | Mitt Romney | 262,371 | 3.71% | |||
| Total | Mitt Romney | Paul Ryan | 2,490,431 | 35.17% | 0 | |
| Libertarian | Gary Johnson | Jim Gray | 47,256 | 0.67% | 0 | |
| Green | Jill Stein | Cheri Honkala | 39,982 | 0.56% | 0 | |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 9,076 | 0.13% | 0 | ||
| Constitution | Virgil Goode | Jim Clymer | 6,274 | 0.09% | 0 | |
| Socialism and Liberation | Peta Lindsay | Yari Osorio | 2,050 | 0.03% | 0 | |
| Justice(write-in) | Rocky Anderson (write-in) | Luis J. Rodriguez | 217 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| Freedom Socialist(write-in) | Stephen Durham | Christina López | 34 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| America's(write-in) | Tom Hoefling | J. D. Ellis | 34 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| Socialist Workers(write-in) | James Harris | Maura DeLuca | 27 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| Socialist Equality(write-in) | Jerry White | Phyllis Scherrer | 19 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| Twelve Visions(write-in) | Jill Reed | Tom Cary | 12 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| American Third Position(write-in) | Merlin Miller | Virginia Abernethy | 6 | <0.01% | 0 | |
| Totals | 7,081,159 | 100.00% | 29 | |||
| Voter Turnout (Registered) | 59.2% | |||||
| 2012 presidential election in New York City | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Staten Island | Total | |||
| Democratic- Working Families | Barack Obama | 502,674 | 339,211 | 604,443 | 470,732 | 78,181 | 1,995,241 | 81.19% | |
| 83.7% | 91.45% | 82.02% | 79.08% | 50.7% | |||||
| Republican- Conservative | Mitt Romney | 89,559 | 29,967 | 124,551 | 118,589 | 74,223 | 436,889 | 17.78% | |
| 14.92% | 8.08% | 16.9% | 19.9% | 48.14% | |||||
| Green | Jill Stein | 3,241 | 648 | 3,616 | 2,121 | 457 | 10,083 | 0.4% | |
| 0.5% | 0.1% | 0.4% | 0.35% | 0.29% | |||||
| Libertarian | Gary Johnson | 2,574 | 529 | 2,074 | 2,050 | 770 | 7,997 | 0.32% | |
| 0.69% | 0.07% | 0.3% | 0.34% | 0.49% | |||||
| Others | Others | 2,243 | 583 | 2,298 | 1,753 | 549 | 7,426 | 0.29% | |
| 0.37% | 0.16% | 0.31% | 0.29% | 0.35% | |||||
| TOTAL | 600,291 | 370,938 | 736,982 | 595,245 | 154,180 | 2,457,636 | 100.00% | ||
| County | Barack Obama Democratic | Mitt Romney Republican | Various candidates Other parties | Margin | Total votes cast | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Albany | 87,556 | 64.49% | 45,064 | 33.19% | 3,147 | 2.32% | 42,492 | 31.30% | 135,767 |
| Allegany | 6,139 | 36.21% | 10,390 | 61.29% | 424 | 2.50% | −4,251 | −25.08% | 16,953 |
| Bronx | 339,211 | 91.45% | 29,967 | 8.08% | 1,760 | 0.47% | 309,244 | 83.37% | 370,938 |
| Broome | 41,970 | 51.46% | 37,641 | 46.15% | 1,954 | 2.39% | 4,329 | 5.31% | 81,565 |
| Cattaraugus | 12,649 | 42.49% | 16,569 | 55.66% | 549 | 1.85% | −3,920 | −13.17% | 29,767 |
| Cayuga | 17,007 | 54.58% | 13,454 | 43.18% | 700 | 2.24% | 3,553 | 11.40% | 31,161 |
| Chautauqua | 23,812 | 45.05% | 27,971 | 52.92% | 1,069 | 2.03% | −4,159 | −7.87% | 52,852 |
| Chemung | 16,797 | 47.98% | 17,612 | 50.31% | 601 | 1.71% | −815 | −2.33% | 35,010 |
| Chenango | 9,116 | 47.20% | 9,713 | 50.29% | 485 | 2.51% | −597 | −3.09% | 19,314 |
| Clinton | 18,961 | 61.85% | 11,115 | 36.26% | 580 | 1.89% | 7,846 | 25.59% | 30,656 |
| Columbia | 16,221 | 55.69% | 12,225 | 41.97% | 683 | 2.34% | 3,996 | 13.72% | 29,129 |
| Cortland | 10,482 | 53.41% | 8,695 | 44.31% | 447 | 2.28% | 1,787 | 9.10% | 19,624 |
| Delaware | 8,304 | 44.55% | 9,938 | 53.32% | 396 | 2.13% | −1,634 | −8.77% | 18,638 |
| Dutchess | 65,312 | 52.80% | 56,025 | 45.29% | 2,368 | 1.91% | 9,287 | 7.51% | 123,705 |
| Erie | 237,356 | 57.31% | 169,675 | 40.97% | 7,164 | 1.72% | 67,681 | 16.34% | 414,195 |
| Essex | 9,784 | 58.53% | 6,647 | 39.76% | 286 | 1.71% | 3,137 | 18.77% | 16,717 |
| Franklin | 9,894 | 62.09% | 5,740 | 36.02% | 300 | 1.89% | 4,154 | 26.07% | 15,934 |
| Fulton | 8,607 | 43.47% | 10,814 | 54.62% | 378 | 1.91% | −2,207 | −11.15% | 19,799 |
| Genesee | 9,601 | 38.80% | 14,607 | 59.03% | 538 | 2.17% | −5,006 | −20.23% | 24,746 |
| Greene | 9,030 | 43.69% | 11,174 | 54.06% | 464 | 2.25% | −2,144 | −10.37% | 20,668 |
| Hamilton | 1,128 | 36.24% | 1,932 | 62.06% | 53 | 1.70% | −804 | −25.82% | 3,113 |
| Herkimer | 11,273 | 45.02% | 13,282 | 53.04% | 485 | 1.94% | −2,009 | −8.02% | 25,040 |
| Jefferson | 17,099 | 47.89% | 18,122 | 50.75% | 487 | 1.36% | −1,023 | −2.86% | 35,708 |
| Kings | 604,443 | 82.02% | 124,551 | 16.90% | 7,988 | 1.08% | 479,892 | 65.12% | 736,982 |
| Lewis | 4,724 | 44.90% | 5,651 | 53.71% | 147 | 1.39% | −927 | −8.81% | 10,522 |
| Livingston | 11,705 | 43.72% | 14,448 | 53.97% | 617 | 2.31% | −2,743 | −10.25% | 26,770 |
| Madison | 13,871 | 49.37% | 13,622 | 48.49% | 601 | 2.14% | 249 | 0.88% | 28,094 |
| Monroe | 193,501 | 57.97% | 133,362 | 39.95% | 6,950 | 2.08% | 60,139 | 18.02% | 333,813 |
| Montgomery | 8,493 | 46.70% | 9,334 | 51.33% | 359 | 1.97% | −841 | −4.63% | 18,186 |
| Nassau | 302,695 | 53.28% | 259,308 | 45.64% | 6,148 | 1.08% | 43,387 | 7.64% | 568,151 |
| New York | 502,674 | 83.74% | 89,559 | 14.92% | 8,058 | 1.34% | 413,115 | 68.82% | 600,291 |
| Niagara | 43,986 | 49.42% | 43,240 | 48.58% | 1,787 | 2.00% | 746 | 0.84% | 89,013 |
| Oneida | 40,468 | 46.68% | 44,530 | 51.36% | 1,702 | 1.96% | −4,062 | −4.68% | 86,700 |
| Onondaga | 122,254 | 59.72% | 78,831 | 38.51% | 3,632 | 1.77% | 43,423 | 21.21% | 204,717 |
| Ontario | 23,087 | 48.25% | 23,820 | 49.78% | 946 | 1.97% | −733 | −1.53% | 47,853 |
| Orange | 73,315 | 52.13% | 65,367 | 46.48% | 1,946 | 1.39% | 7,948 | 5.65% | 140,628 |
| Orleans | 5,787 | 39.35% | 8,594 | 58.44% | 325 | 2.21% | −2,807 | −19.09% | 14,706 |
| Oswego | 23,515 | 52.73% | 19,980 | 44.81% | 1,096 | 2.46% | 3,535 | 7.92% | 44,591 |
| Otsego | 12,117 | 50.20% | 11,461 | 47.48% | 561 | 2.32% | 656 | 2.72% | 24,139 |
| Putnam | 19,512 | 44.00% | 24,083 | 54.31% | 750 | 1.69% | −4,571 | −10.31% | 44,345 |
| Queens | 470,732 | 79.08% | 118,589 | 19.92% | 5,924 | 1.00% | 352,143 | 59.16% | 595,245 |
| Rensselaer | 37,408 | 54.96% | 29,113 | 42.77% | 1,540 | 2.27% | 8,295 | 12.19% | 68,061 |
| Richmond | 78,181 | 50.71% | 74,223 | 48.14% | 1,776 | 1.15% | 3,958 | 2.57% | 154,180 |
| Rockland | 65,793 | 52.78% | 57,428 | 46.07% | 1,424 | 1.15% | 8,365 | 6.71% | 124,645 |
| Saratoga | 52,957 | 50.19% | 50,382 | 47.75% | 2,171 | 2.06% | 2,575 | 2.44% | 105,510 |
| Schenectady | 36,844 | 56.74% | 26,568 | 40.92% | 1,521 | 2.34% | 10,276 | 15.82% | 64,933 |
| Schoharie | 5,427 | 41.09% | 7,467 | 56.54% | 313 | 2.37% | −2,040 | −15.45% | 13,207 |
| Schuyler | 3,674 | 45.10% | 4,281 | 52.55% | 191 | 2.35% | −607 | −7.45% | 8,146 |
| Seneca | 7,094 | 53.48% | 5,889 | 44.39% | 283 | 2.13% | 1,205 | 9.09% | 13,266 |
| St. Lawrence | 21,353 | 57.41% | 15,138 | 40.70% | 700 | 1.89% | 6,215 | 16.71% | 37,191 |
| Steuben | 15,787 | 40.97% | 21,954 | 56.98% | 790 | 2.05% | −6,167 | −16.01% | 38,531 |
| Suffolk | 304,079 | 51.17% | 282,131 | 47.48% | 8,056 | 1.35% | 21,948 | 3.69% | 594,266 |
| Sullivan | 15,268 | 53.73% | 12,705 | 44.71% | 442 | 1.56% | 2,563 | 9.02% | 28,415 |
| Tioga | 8,930 | 41.36% | 12,117 | 56.13% | 542 | 2.51% | −3,187 | −14.77% | 21,589 |
| Tompkins | 27,244 | 68.48% | 11,107 | 27.92% | 1,430 | 3.60% | 16,137 | 40.56% | 39,781 |
| Ulster | 47,752 | 59.97% | 29,759 | 37.37% | 2,115 | 2.66% | 17,993 | 22.60% | 79,626 |
| Warren | 14,806 | 50.06% | 14,119 | 47.73% | 653 | 2.21% | 687 | 2.33% | 29,578 |
| Washington | 11,523 | 49.89% | 11,085 | 48.00% | 487 | 2.11% | 438 | 1.89% | 23,095 |
| Wayne | 16,635 | 44.30% | 20,060 | 53.43% | 852 | 2.27% | −3,425 | −9.13% | 37,547 |
| Westchester | 240,785 | 61.99% | 143,122 | 36.84% | 4,540 | 1.17% | 97,663 | 25.15% | 388,447 |
| Wyoming | 5,661 | 34.66% | 10,348 | 63.35% | 326 | 1.99% | −4,687 | −28.69% | 16,335 |
| Yates | 4,488 | 47.53% | 4,798 | 50.82% | 156 | 1.65% | −310 | −3.29% | 9,442 |
| Totals | 4,485,877 | 63.35% | 2,490,496 | 35.17% | 105,163 | 1.49% | 1,995,381 | 28.18% | 7,081,536 |
See full list of sourcesSee full list of sources
| Democratic Hold Gain from Republican | Republican Hold Gain from Democratic |
Obama swept 24 of the state's 27 congressional districts, including three held by Republicans.[16]
| District | Obama | Romney | Representative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 49.62% | 49.08% | Tim Bishop |
| 2nd | 51.65% | 47.23% | Peter T. King |
| 3rd | 50.76% | 48.21% | Steve Israel |
| 4th | 56.31% | 42.76% | Carolyn McCarthy |
| 5th | 90.6% | 9.1% | Gregory Meeks |
| 6th | 67.8% | 31.05% | Grace Meng |
| 7th | 88.35% | 10.34% | Nydia Velázquez |
| 8th | 89.26% | 10.14% | Hakeem Jeffries |
| 9th | 85.28% | 13.84% | Yvette Clarke |
| 10th | 73.64% | 25% | Jerry Nadler |
| 11th | 51.6% | 47.32% | Michael Grimm |
| 12th | 76.92% | 21.51% | Carolyn Maloney |
| 13th | 94.64% | 4.56% | Charles B. Rangel |
| 14th | 80.67% | 18.27% | Joe Crowley |
| 15th | 96.75% | 3% | Jose Serrano |
| 16th | 73.69% | 25.53% | Eliot Engel |
| 17th | 57.07% | 41.84% | Nita Lowey |
| 18th | 51.43% | 47.15% | Sean Patrick Maloney |
| 19th | 52.12% | 45.85% | Chris Gibson |
| 20th | 59.2% | 38.8% | Paul Tonko |
| 21st | 52.24% | 46.07% | Bill Owens |
| 22nd | 48.76% | 49.24% | Richard L. Hanna |
| 23rd | 48.38% | 49.59% | Tom Reed |
| 24th | 57% | 41.1% | Dan Maffei |
| 25th | 58.77% | 39.41% | Louise Slaughter |
| 26th | 63.94% | 34.31% | Brian Higgins |
| 27th | 42.89% | 55.29% | Chris Collins |
As expected, New York gave a landslide win to Obama, with 4,485,877 votes, or 63.35% of the popular vote, 28.18% lead ahead of Romney.[17] It was one of only six states to swing in Obama's favor from 2008, when he won with a 26.85% margin.[18] New York has voted solidly for the Democratic candidate in every election sinceMichael Dukakis in1988, which marked the end of its status as a swing state. This was the greatest ever percentage of the vote won by a Democrat since Lyndon B. Johnson won 68.56% of the vote in his1964 44-state landslide.
The politics of New York State are dominated by the heavily populated area ofNew York City, which Barack Obama won in a historic landslide, taking 81.19% of the vote and sweeping all 5 boroughs. Obama took 1,995,241 votes in New York City, to Mitt Romney's 436,889. No other presidential candidate of either party has ever received more than 80% of the vote in New York City, and this remains the only time since 2000 that a Democrat won Staten Island, as well as all five boroughs of New York City. This was not only due to its majority liberal and extremely diverse population[how?]. His performance in New York City likely contributed to his improvement from 2008, which was unusual compared to the rest of the country where he underperformed from 2008 (particularly in areas like theMidwest andRust Belt).
He managed to flipStaten Island, which voted forJohn McCain in 2008, as well as improved his margins in all other boroughs except forManhattan. This improved performance is likely attributable to Hurricane Sandy, which made landfall on October 29 and had devastating effects on the state, killing 44 people, destroying 250,000 vehicles and 300 homes, damaging 69,000 residential units,[19] and flooding the New York City Subway, all tunnels within the city (except for the Lincoln Tunnel), and many suburban communities.[20] Areas that weren't directly affected by the hurricane were indirectly effected by power outages and major disruption to data communication.[21] Staten Island was hit hardest, with its geographical position combined with weather patterns, causing a 16 feet-high storm tide at its peak, flooding major residential areas.[22] 23 of the 44 deaths from the hurricane were in Staten Island.[23] The federal government's powerful and coordinated response to the hurricane was praised by those on both sides of the political aisle, garneringMayor of New York CityMichael Bloomberg's endorsement,[3] as well as praise from Republican politicians like then New Jersey GovernorChris Christie.[24] This – combined with the media's heavy criticism of Romney's support for a 40% budget cut toFEMA, which would grow to as much as 60% in the coming years – weakened Romney's performance amongst voters across city, including conservatives, especially in the borough ofStaten Island.[25]
The advantage from Hurricane Sandy was also reflected in polls. Prior to the storm, nine nationwide polls listed inReal Clear Politics' database found Romney and Obama each leading in four and one tied. Seven national polls taken after the storm had shown Obama leading in three, four being tied, and Romney leading in none. In particular, a poll byPolitico andGeorge Washington University found Obama's lead increasing in theNortheast from 8 to 20% before and after the storm.[26]
Unlike many rural areas across the country, most notably in the Midwest, rural counties didn't swing especially hard against Obama this election. Most of the political landscape looked roughly the same, with the exception ofChautauqua County flipping red after supporting Obama by a narrow margin in 2008. However, Obama tied with Romney for white voters (who make up a majority of upstate's population but a minority in New York City) according toNew York Times exit polls, a significant decline from 2008 when he won white voters 52 to 46.[27] Discounting New York City's votes, Obama still would have carried New York State, albeit by a closer margin. Excluding New York City, Obama's vote total in the state was 2,490,636 to Romney's 2,053,607, giving Obama a 54.03%–44.54% win outside of NYC.
In terms of exit polls, Obama performed roughly as expected. He won both women and men 68 to 31 and 58 to 42, respectively, and won Black voters 94 to 5 and Hispanic voters 89 to 11. These ethnic groups collectively make up 54.6% of New York City's population, and thus hold great influence in state elections. Obama won all age groups, education levels, and income levels, though he did best amongst 18- to 29-year-olds (72 to 25), those with no college degree (66 to 34), and those with an income under $30,000 (81 to 17), respectively. Obama not only won liberals and registered Democrats, but he also won moderates and independents 63 to 36 and 50 to 44 respectively – these groups make up 42% and 23% of the electorate and were thus vital for Obama to win.
State and district results of the2012 United States presidential election | ||
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