The 2012 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota was held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 to elect the U.S. representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate. A primary election was held on June 12, 2012;[1] a candidate must receive at least 300 votes to appear on the general election ballot in November.[2]
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 County results Cramer: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Gulleson: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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Rick Berg, a member of the Republican Party who was first elected to represent the at-large district in 2010, had announced that he would not seek re-election and would instead run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Kent Conrad.[3] Republican Kevin Cramer won the open House seat.
Republican primary
The North Dakota Republican Party endorsed Public Service Commissioner Brian Kalk at their state convention, though general election ballot access is determined by a statewide primary election held on June 12, 2012. In contrast to state political tradition, fellow Public Service Commissioner Kevin Cramer did not seek the party endorsement, instead attempting to defeat Kalk on the June primary ballot.
Candidates
Nominee
- Kevin Cramer, Public Service Commissioner[4]
Eliminated in primary
- Brian Kalk, Public Service Commissioner and state party endorsed candidate[5]
Withdrew
- Shane Goettle, U.S. Senator John Hoeven's state director[6]
- Bette Grande, state representative[7]
- DuWayne Hendrickson, perennial candidate[8]
- Kim Koppelman, state representative[9]
Declined
- Rick Berg, incumbent U.S. Representative[3]
- Al Carlson, state House Majority Leader[10][11]
- Tony Clark, Public Service Commissioner[12]
- Cory Fong, North Dakota State Tax Commissioner[13]
- Tony Grindberg, state senator[14]
- Robert Harms, Tea Party activist and former treasurer of the North Dakota Republican Party[11]
- Kelly Schmidt, North Dakota State Treasurer[15]
Debate
The North Dakota Republican Party held a candidates' debate on December 14 at the campus of Valley City State University. All five GOP candidates declared at the time—Cramer, Goettle, Grande, Kalk, and Koppelman—participated.[16]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Kevin Cramer | Brian Kalk | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Dixon | June 4–6, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 60% | 21% | 19% |
| Forum Communications Co. | May 3–8, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.3% | 38% | 25% | 27% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Kevin Cramer | 54,405 | 54.4 | |
| Republican | Brian Kalk | 45,415 | 45.5 | |
| n/a | Write-ins | 113 | 0.1 | |
| Total votes | 99,933 | 100.0 | ||
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Pam Gulleson, former state representative[18]
Declined
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic–NPL | Pam Gulleson | 51,750 | 99.9 | |
| Democratic–NPL | Write-in | 74 | 0.1 | |
| Total votes | 51,824 | 100.0 | ||
Libertarian nomination
The Libertarian Party of North Dakota has selected small business owner Eric Olson as their nominee at a state meeting.[20]
General election
Endorsements
- Organizations
- National Republican Congressional Committee "Young Guns" Program[21]
- Organizations
- Blue Dog Coalition[22]
- Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee "Red to Blue" Program[23]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Kevin Cramer (R) | Pam Gulleson (D) | Eric Olson (L) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Dixon | October 26–28, 2012 | 625 | ± 4.0% | 50% | 40% | 2% | 8% |
| Forum/Essman | October 12–15, 2012 | 500 | ± 4% | 52% | 32% | 1% | 15% |
| Mason-Dixon | October 3–5, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 49% | 37% | 2% | 12% |
| Mason Dixon | June 4–6, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 49% | 35% | 4% | 12% |
| Forum Communications Co. | May 3–8, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.3% | 61% | 23% | – | 15% |
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[24] | Likely R | November 5, 2012 |
| Rothenberg[25] | Safe R | November 2, 2012 |
| Roll Call[26] | Likely R | November 4, 2012 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[27] | Likely R | November 5, 2012 |
| NY Times[28] | Safe R | November 4, 2012 |
| RCP[29] | Likely R | November 4, 2012 |
| The Hill[30] | Likely R | November 4, 2012 |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Kevin Cramer | 173,585 | 54.89% | +0.15% | |
| Democratic–NPL | Pam Gulleson | 131,870 | 41.70% | -3.23% | |
| Libertarian | Eric Olson | 10,261 | 3.24% | N/A | |
| n/a | Write-ins | 508 | 0.16% | -0.17% | |
| Total votes | 316,224 | 100.0% | N/A | ||
| Republican hold | |||||
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Barnes (largest city: Valley City)
- Grand Forks (largest city: Grand Forks)
- Name (Largest city: Stanley)
- Ramsey (Largest city: Devils Lake)
- Towner (Largest city: Cando)
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
References
External links
- North Dakota State Board of Elections
- United States House of Representatives elections in North Dakota, 2012 at Ballotpedia
- North Dakota U.S. House at OurCampaigns.com
- Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in North Dakota from OpenSecrets
- Outside spending at the Sunlight Foundation
- Official campaign websites