2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky

The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 to elect the six U.S. representatives from the state of Kentucky, one from each of the state's six congressional districts. The elections will coincide with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election. Primary elections were held on May 22, 2012.^[1]

2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky

← 2010 November 6, 2012 2014 →
All 6 Kentucky seats to the United States House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Party Republican Democratic Last election 4 2 Seats won 5 1 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 1,027,582 684,744 Percentage 58.87% 39.23% Swing 3.48% 1.84%
Republican   50–60%   60–70%   70–80% Democratic   60–70%

Overview

United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky, 2012^[2]
Party		Votes	Percentage	Seats	+/–
	Republican	1,027,582	58.87%	5	+1
	Democratic	684,744	39.23%	1	-1
	Libertarian	4,914	0.28%	0	—
	Others	28,137	1.61%	0	—
Totals		1,745,377	100.00%	6	—

Redistricting

Redistricting legislation was passed by both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly and signed into law by Governor Steve Beshear on February 10, 2012.^[3]

District 1

See also: Kentucky's 1st congressional district

Republican Ed Whitfield, who had represented the 1st district since 1995, ran for re-election.^[4] In redistricting, the 1st district was made slightly more competitive, but continues to strongly favor Republicans.^[5]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Ed Whitfield, incumbent U.S. Representative

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Charles Kendall Hatchett, real estate broker and nominee for this seat in 2010

Eliminated in primary

• James Buckmaster

Declined

• Brent Yonts, state representative^[6]

Primary results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Charles Kendall Hatchett	19,127	59.1
	Democratic	James Buckmaster	13,239	40.9
Total votes			32,366	100.0

General election

Results

Kentucky's 1st congressional district, 2012 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Ed Whitfield (incumbent)	199,956	69.6
	Democratic	Charles Kendall Hatchett	87,199	30.4
Total votes			287,155	100.0
	Republican hold

District 2

See also: Kentucky's 2nd congressional district

Republican Brett Guthrie, who had represented the 2nd district since 2009, ran for re-election.^[7] In redistricting, the 2nd district was made slightly more favorable to Republicans.^[5]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• David Lynn Williams, perennial candidate^[8]

Declined

• Elaine Walker, former Secretary of State of Kentucky^[6]

Libertarian primary

Craig Astor ran as a Libertarian:^[9]

General election

Results

Kentucky's 2nd congressional district, 2012 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Brett Guthrie (incumbent)	181,508	64.3
	Democratic	David Lynn Williams	89,541	31.7
	Independent	Andrew R. Beacham	6,304	2.2
	Libertarian	Craig R. Astor	4,914	1.8
Total votes			282,267	100.0
	Republican hold

District 3

See also: Kentucky's 3rd congressional district

Democrat John Yarmuth, who had represented the 3rd district since 2007, ran for re-election.^[10] The 3rd district was made more favorable to Democrats in redistricting.^[5]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• John Yarmuth, incumbent U.S. Representative

Eliminated in primary

• Burrel Charles Farnsley, perennial candidate^[11]

Primary results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Yarmuth (incumbent)	43,635	86.7
	Democratic	Burrel Charles Farnsley	6,716	13.3
Total votes			50,351	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Brooks Wicker, financial advisor and candidate for this seat in 2010^[12][11]

General election

Results

Kentucky's 3rd congressional district, 2012 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Yarmuth (incumbent)	206,385	64.0
	Republican	Brooks Wicker	111,452	34.5
	Independent	Robert L. DeVore, Jr.	4,819	1.5
Total votes			322,656	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 4

See also: Kentucky's 4th congressional district

Republican Geoff Davis, who had represented 4th district from 2005 to 2012, resigned due to family health issues.^[7] In redistricting, the 4th district was made more favorable to Republicans.^[5]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Thomas Massie, Lewis County judge-executive^[7]

Eliminated in primary

• Walter Christian Schumm, building contractor
• Marcus Carey, lawyer
• Gary Moore, Boone County judge-executive^[13]
• Brian Oerther, teacher
• Alecia Webb-Edgington, state representative
• Tom Wurtz, business consultant

Declined

• Hunter Bates, former chief of staff to Senator Mitch McConnell^[14]
• Kenny Brown, Boone County Clerk^[15]
• Ben Dusing, lawyer and former assistant U.S. Attorney^[16]
• Trey Grayson, former Secretary of State of Kentucky;^[17]
• Adam Koenig, state representative^[18]
• K. Lance Lucas, lawyer and son of former Democratic U.S. Representative Ken Lucas^[13]
• Rick Robinson, aide to former Senator Jim Bunning^[15]
• Kevin Sell, businessman^[19]
• Katie Stine, President Pro Tempore of the Kentucky Senate^[13][20][21]
• Damon Thayer, state senator^[21]

Primary results

 

Results of the primary by county. Red indicates a county won by Massie.

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Thomas Massie	19,689	44.8
	Republican	Alecia Webb-Edgington	12,557	28.6
	Republican	Gary Moore	6,521	14.8
	Republican	Walter Christian Schumm	3,514	8.0
	Republican	Marc Carey	783	1.8
	Republican	Tom Wurtz	598	1.4
	Republican	Brian D. Oerther	257	0.6
Total votes			43,919	100.0

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Bill Adkins, lawyer and chair of the Grant County Democratic Party^[22]

Eliminated in primary

• Greg Frank, military veteran

Declined

• Kenny French, former Gallatin County Judge-Executive^[17]
• Patrick Hughes, attorney^[23]
• Linda Klembara, president of the Kentucky Women's Network^[20][23]
• Darrell Link, Grant County Judge-Executive^[17]
• Ken Rechtin, Campbell County Commissioner^[20][23]
• Nathan Smith, vice chairman of the Kentucky Democratic Party^[20][17][23]
• Diane Whalen, Mayor of Florence^[24]

Primary results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Bill Adkins	17,209	68.6
	Democratic	Greg Frank	7,869	31.4
Total votes			25,078	100.0

General election

Results

Kentucky's 4th congressional district, 2012 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Thomas Massie	186,036	62.1
	Democratic	Bill Adkins	104,734	35.0
	Independent	David Lewis	8,674	2.9
Total votes			299,444	100.0
	Republican hold

District 5

See also: Kentucky's 5th congressional district

Republican Hal Rogers, who had represented the 5th district since 1981, ran for re-election.^[7] The 5th district was made slightly more competitive in redistricting.^[5]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Hal Rogers, incumbent U.S. Representative

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Kenneth Stepp, lawyer^[25]

Eliminated in primary

• Michael Ackerman^[26]

Primary results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Kenneth S. Stepp	12,275	52.7
	Democratic	Michael Ackerman	11,016	47.3
Total votes			23,291	100.0

General election

Results

Kentucky's 5th congressional district, 2012 ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Hal Rogers (incumbent)	195,408	77.9
	Democratic	Kenneth S. Stepp	55,447	22.1
Total votes			250,855	100.0
	Republican hold

District 6

2012 Kentucky's 6th congressional district election

← 2010 2014 →

Nominee Andy Barr Ben Chandler Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 153,222 141,438 Percentage 50.6% 46.7%

County results Barr:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Hicks:      50–60%

U.S. Representative before election Ben Chandler Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Andy Barr Republican

See also: Kentucky's 6th congressional district

Democrat Ben Chandler, who had represented the 6th district since 2004, ran for re-election.^[7] In redistricting, the 6th district was modified with the effect that, had the 2008 presidential election been held under the new boundaries, Democratic nominee Barack Obama would have received a share of the vote 1.5 percentage points greater than that which he achieved under the former boundaries.^[5]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Ben Chandler, incumbent U.S. Representative

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Andy Barr, attorney and nominee for this seat in 2010^[27][11][28]

Eliminated in primary

• Patrick J. Kelly II^[7]
• Curtis Kenimer^[7][8]

Primary results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Andy Barr	20,104	82.8
	Republican	Patrick J. Kelly, II	2,823	11.6
	Republican	Curtis Kenimer	1,354	5.6
Total votes			24,281	100.0

General election

Randolph S. Vance ran as a write-in candidate.^[29]

Endorsements

Ben Chandler (D)

Organizations

• Blue Dog Coalition^[30]
• Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee "Frontline" Program^[31]

Andy Barr (R)

Organizations

• National Republican Congressional Committee "Young Guns" Program^[32]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Ben Chandler (D)	Andy Barr (R)	Randolph Vance (I)	Undecided
	September 30–October 1, 2012	400	± %	49%	46%	—	5%
Mellman (D-Chandler)	September 10–13, 2012	400	± 4.9%	51%	37%	3%	9%
	June 24–26, 2012	400	± 4.9%	47%	42%	—	13%
Mellman (D-Chandler)	March 26–28, 2012	400	± 4.9%	54%	30%	—	16%
	February 20–21, 2012	400	± 4.9%	49%	42%	—	9%

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report^[33]	Tossup	November 5, 2012
Rothenberg^[34]	Tossup	November 2, 2012
Roll Call^[35]	Tossup	November 4, 2012
Sabato's Crystal Ball^[36]	Lean R (flip)	November 5, 2012
NY Times^[37]	Lean D	November 4, 2012
RCP^[38]	Tossup	November 4, 2012
The Hill^[39]	Tossup	November 4, 2012

Results

Kentucky's 6th congressional district, 2012^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Andy Barr	153,222	50.6
	Democratic	Ben Chandler (incumbent)	141,438	46.7
	Independent	Randolph Vance	8,340	2.7
Total votes			303,000	100.0
	Republican gain from Democratic

References

1. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 15, 2010. Retrieved August 16, 2011.
2. "2012 Primary and General Election Results". Kentucky State Board of Elections. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
3. Brammer, Jack (February 10, 2012). "Beshear approves new congressional map that splits Jessamine". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
4. Alessi, Ryan (December 29, 2011). "U.S. Rep. Whitfield to run again in 2012, responds to questions about donations and residency". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
5. Alessi, Ryan (February 12, 2012). "Analysis: New congressional map only slightly moves the political needle in the 6 districts". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
6. Alessi, Ryan (August 22, 2011). "It's not too soon for 2014 and beyond for these potential Democratic candidates". Pure Politics. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
7. "7 Republicans file to run for Davis' 4th District seat". The Courier-Journal. February 17, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
8. AP primary results
9. Candidate fillings
10. Alessi, Ryan (September 5, 2011). "U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth to run for fourth term in 2012". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
11. Carroll, James R. (May 22, 2012). "Three U.S. House races in Kentucky will be reruns this fall". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
12. Alessi, Ryan (October 6, 2011). "Republican Brooks Wicker to run for Kentucky's 3rd Congressional District". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved October 23, 2011.
13. Alessi, Ryan (December 20, 2011). "4th District Update: Moore announces; Sen. Stine, Rep. Koeing and Lance Lucas considering it". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
14. Toeplitz, Shira (December 19, 2011). "Hunter Bates Won't Run to Succeed Geoff Davis in Kentucky". Roll Call. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
15. Alessi, Ryan (December 15, 2011). "Potential GOP 4th District candidates praise Geoff Davis as they mull running in '12". Pure Politics. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
16. Alessi, Ryan (January 2, 2012). "4th District Update: Ben Dusing out; Webb-Edgington hires Davis' spokesman as manager". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
17. Gerth, Joseph (December 16, 2011). "Candidates stampede to fill open 4th District congressional seat". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
18. Alessi, Ryan (December 29, 2011). "N.Ky. Update: Koenig runs for re-election not Congress; Shawn Baker's 1st fundraiser for Senate". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
19. Van Benschoten, Amanda (December 17, 2011). "Sell will not run for Congress in 2012". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
20. Weber, Don (December 20, 2011). "Boone Judge-Exec Gary Moore tells fellow official he is in the 4th Congressional race". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
21. Toeplitz, Shira (December 15, 2011). "Former McConnell Staffer Considers Kentucky House Run". Roll Call. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
22. "Lewis Countian Thomas Massie Wins GOP Nomination in Ky. 4th District". WSAZ-TV. AP. May 22, 2012. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
23. Van Benschoten, Amanda (December 17, 2011). "NKY Dems: We'll field a candidate for Congress". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
24. Weber, Don (December 22, 2011). "4th District Update: GOP's Ben Dusing preparing to run; Florence Mayor not running". Pure Politics. cn|2. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
25. "Manchester Attorney Files to Challenge Congressman Hal Rogers". WFPL. February 1, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2012.^{[permanent dead link]}
26. Adams, Steve (May 22, 2012). "Kentucky's primary election has low turnout". WOWK-TV. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
27. . Archived from the original on 2010-04-17.
28. Hohmann, James (June 9, 2011). "Barr launching a rematch with Chandler". Politico. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
29. Carroll, James R. (February 7, 2012). "4 Kentucky congressmen are unopposed in primary". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
30. . bluedogdems.ngpvanhost.com. Blue Dog Coalition. Archived from the original on 28 October 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
31. . actblue.com. DCCC. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
32. . gopyoungguns.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
33. "The Cook Political Report — Charts – 2012 House Competitive Races". Cookpolitical.com. November 5, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
34. "House Ratings". Rothenbergpoliticalreport.com. November 2, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
35. [1], as of November 4, 2012^[update]
36. Crystal Ball, as of November 5, 2012^[update]
37. House Race Ratings, The New York Times, as of November 4, 2012^[update]
38. [2], as of November 4, 2012^[update]
39. "House Ratings". The Hill. November 3, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2012.

External links

• Elections from the Kentucky Secretary of State
• United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky, 2012 at Ballotpedia
• Kentucky U.S. House at OurCampaigns.com
• Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in Kentucky at OpenSecrets
• Outside spending at the Sunlight Foundation
• House and Senate Campaign Finance at the Federal Election Commission - House and Senate Campaigns

Preceded by 2010 elections

United States House elections in Kentucky 2012

Succeeded by 2014 elections