2012 Oregon's 1st congressional district special election
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A 2012 special election in Oregon's 1st congressional district was held on January 31, 2012, to fill a seat in the U.S. Congress for Oregon's 1st congressional district, following the resignation of Representative David Wu. Primary elections were held on November 8, 2011, with the Democrats selecting state senator Suzanne Bonamici and the Republicans selecting businessman Rob Cornilles.[1][2]
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January 31, 2012
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 County results Bonamici: 40–50% 50–60% 70–80% Cornilles: 40–50% | |||||||||||||||||
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Bonamici was declared the winner almost as soon as the ballot deadline expired at 8 pm PST.[3] She carried every county in the district except Yamhill County, which Cornilles won by a seven-point margin.[4]
Democratic primary
Ballots were due for the Democratic primary on November 8, 2011.
Candidates
The following candidates filed to run in the primary:
- Saba Ahmed, lobbyist and former engineer[5][6]
- Brad Avakian, commissioner of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries[6][7]
- Suzanne Bonamici, state senator[6][7]
- Dominick Hammon, former contractor[5][6]
- Robert Lettin, investment adviser[5][6]
- Todd Ritter, textbook dealer[5][6]
- Dan Strite, golf professional and business owner[5][6]
- Brad Witt, state representative[6][7]
Polling
| Poll source | Dates administered | Brad Avakian | Suzanne Bonamici | Dominick Hannon | Robert Lettin | Todd Ritter | Dan Strite | Brad Witt | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregonian/KGW[8] | October 24–26, 2011 | 11% | 45% | – | – | – | – | 5% | 1% | 38% |
| Survey USA[9] | October 17–20, 2011 | 14% | 52% | 1% | 0% | 1% | 1% | 9% | – | 21% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Suzanne Bonamici | 48,404 | 65.27 | |
| Democratic | Brad Avakian | 16,415 | 22.13 | |
| Democratic | Brad Witt | 5,870 | 7.92 | |
| Democratic | Dan Strite | 1,176 | 1.59 | |
| Democratic | Dominic Hammon | 889 | 1.20 | |
| Democratic | Todd Lee Ritter | 632 | 0.85 | |
| write-ins | 454 | 0.61 | ||
| Democratic | Saba Ahmed | 231 | 0.31 | |
| Democratic | Robert E. Lettin | 91 | 0.12 | |
| Total votes | 74,162 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Ballots were due for the Republican primary on November 8, 2011.
Candidates
The following candidates have filed to run in the primary:
- Rob Cornilles, businessman and unsuccessful 2010 nominee[6][7]
- Pavel Goberman, fitness instructor and perennial candidate[5][6]
- Jim Greenfield, real estate investor and film producer[5][6]
- Lisa Michaels, activist and cable show host[5][6]
- Delinda Delgado-Morgan, works with the International Union of Operating Engineers[5][6]
Polling
| Poll source | Dates administered | Rob Cornilles | Delinda Delgado-Morgan | Pavel Goberman | Jim Greenfield | Lisa Michaels | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA[9] | October 17–20, 2011 | 66% | 2% | 1% | 4% | 7% | 20% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Rob Cornilles | 39,500 | 72.76 | |
| Republican | Jim Greenfield | 6,222 | 11.46 | |
| Republican | Lisa Michaels | 5,597 | 10.31 | |
| Republican | Pavel Goberman | 1,629 | 3.00 | |
| Republican | Delinda Delgado-Morgan | 831 | 1.53 | |
| write-ins | 507 | 0.93 | ||
| Total votes | 54,286 | 100 | ||
Independent primary
Oregon's cross nomination system, a form of fusion voting, allows a candidate for partisan public office to be nominated by up to three political parties.[10] In November 2011, the Independent Party of Oregon held a primary, announcing the results on November 30. Suzanne Bonamici won the primary and was able to list herself as the nominee of the Independent Party on the general election ballot.
Candidates
- Suzanne Bonamici, Oregon state senator
- Rob Cornilles, businessman
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Suzanne Bonamici | 56 | 64.37 | |
| Republican | Rob Cornilles | 31 | 35.63 | |
Special general election
Ballots were due for the special election on January 31, 2012.
Candidates
The following candidates will be on the ballot:
- Suzanne Bonamici, (Democrat, Independent), State Senator[2]
- Rob Cornilles (Republican), businessman[2]
- James Foster (Libertarian), computer programmer[12]
- Steven Reynolds (Progressive), Army veteran[13]
Polling
| Poll Source | Date Administered | Suzanne Bonamici (D) | Rob Cornilles (R) | James Foster (L) | Steven Reynolds (OPP) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA[14] | December 22, 2011 – January 4, 2012 | 50% | 39% | 2% | 2% | 7% |
| Public Policy Polling/Daily Kos/SEIU[15] | December 13–14, 2011 | 52% | 41% | – | – | 7% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Suzanne Bonamici | 111,570 | 53.82 | ||
| Republican | Rob Cornilles | 81,985 | 39.55 | ||
| Progressive | Steven Reynolds | 6,679 | 3.22 | ||
| Libertarian | James Foster | 6,524 | 3.15 | ||
| write-ins | 527 | 0.25 | |||
| Total votes | 207,285 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
By county
| County | Suzanne Bonamici Democratic |
Rob Cornilles Republican |
Various candidates Other parties |
Margin | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Clatsop | 6,105 | 53.93% | 4,355 | 38.47% | 861 | 7.60% | 1,750 | 15.46% | 11,321 |
| Columbia | 6,949 | 49.29% | 5,834 | 41.38% | 1,314 | 9.33% | 1,115 | 7.91% | 14,097 |
| Multnomah (part) | 20,735 | 75.22% | 5,491 | 19.92% | 1,342 | 4.86% | 15,244 | 55.30% | 27,568 |
| Washington | 68,890 | 52.01% | 55,137 | 41.63% | 8,416 | 6.36% | 13,753 | 10.38% | 132,443 |
| Yamhill | 10,725 | 42.33% | 12,579 | 50.36% | 2,030 | 7.31% | -1,854 | -8.03% | 25,334 |
| Totals | 111,570 | 53.82% | 81,985 | 39.55% | 13,730 | 6.62% | 29,585 | 14.27% | 207,285 |