United States Senate election in North Dakota, 2012
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200px U.S. Senate election results map. Blue denotes counties/districts won by Heitkamp. Red denotes those won by Berg.
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| Elections in North Dakota | |||||||||
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The 2012 United States Senate election in North Dakota took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the 2012 U.S. presidential election as well as other elections to the United States Senate and House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic-NPL U.S. Senator Kent Conrad decided to retire instead of running for re-election to a fifth term. Though each party endorses a single candidate in state political conventions in the spring, North Dakota determines actual ballot access for the general election in a statewide primary election that was held June 12, 2012.[2] Former Democratic-NPL Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp ran for and won the open seat in a stunning victory.[3]
Contents
Democratic primary
The North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party held their state convention March 16–18, 2012, in Grand Forks. Former state attorney general and 2000 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Heidi Heitkamp was uncontested in seeking the official party nomination and was the only member of the party elected to appear on the state primary ballot.[4]
Candidates
Declared
- Heidi Heitkamp, former state attorney general and 2000 Democratic gubernatorial nominee[5]
Withdrew
- Thomas Potter, Presbyterian pastor and former professor of finance at UND[6] (dropped out February 2012)[7]
Declined
- Kent Conrad, incumbent U.S. senator[8]
- Pam Gulleson, former state representative and former chief of staff and former state director for former Senator Byron Dorgan[9]
- Kristin Hedger, former Democratic-NPL candidate for North Dakota Secretary of State[10]
- Joel Heitkamp, former state senator and radio personality[11]
- Roger Johnson, president of the National Farmers Union and former North Dakota agriculture commissioner[12]
- Earl Pomeroy, former U.S. representative[13]
- Mac Schneider, state senator[10]
- Ryan Taylor, North Dakota Senate Minority Leader[14]
- Tim Mathern, state senator and 2008 Democratic gubernatorial nominee[15]
- Tracy Potter, state senator and 2010 Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate[15]
- Tim Purdon, U.S. Attorney[16]
- Jasper Schneider, USDA rural development state director[15][17]
Republican primary
North Dakota Republicans endorsed U.S. Representative Rick Berg at their convention, though general election ballot access is determined by a statewide primary election held on June 12, 2012. In contrast to state political tradition, declared candidate Duane Sand did not seek the party endorsement, trying instead to defeat Berg on the June primary ballot.[18]
Candidates
Declared
- Rick Berg, U.S. Representative[19][20]
- Duane Sand, former North and South Dakota Director for Americans for Prosperity[21]
Declined
- Bob Harms, North Dakota Republican Party treasurer[15]
- Al Carlson, North Dakota state house majority leader[22]
- Tony Clark, state public service commissioner[23]
- Kevin Cramer, state public service commissioner[23]
- Cory Fong, state tax commissioner[24]
- Jack Dalrymple, North Dakota governor and 1992 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate[25]
- Shane Goettle, U.S. Senator John Hoeven's state director[26]
- Tony Grindberg, state senator[27]
- Brian Kalk, state public service commissioner (running for House)[28]
- Kim Koppelman, state representative[29]
- Ed Schafer, former U.S. agriculture secretary and former North Dakota governor[30]
- Kelly Schmidt, North Dakota treasurer[31]
- Wayne Stenehjem, North Dakota attorney general[32]
- John Warford, mayor of Bismarck[33]
- Drew Wrigley, North Dakota lieutenant governor[25]
Endorsements
| Endorsements for Rick Berg |
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Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Rick Berg |
Duane Sand |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Dixon | June 4–6, 2012 | 625† | ± 4% | 73% | 16% | 11% |
| Forum Communications Co. | May 3–8, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.3% | 65% | 21% | 14% |
†Likely general election voters
Results
| Republican primary results[34] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Rick Berg | 67,849 | 66.41 | |
| Republican | Duane Sand | 34,209 | 33.48 | |
| Republican | Write-Ins | 111 | .41 | |
| Total votes | 102,281 | 100 | ||
General election
Candidates
- Rick Berg (R), U.S. Representative[19][20]
- Heidi Heitkamp (D), former Attorney General of North Dakota and nominee for Governor in 2000[5]
- Bill Kiefer (I), businessman[35]
Debates
The first debate between Berg and Heitkamp was broadcast on Prairie Public Television at 9 PM on Monday, October 15, 2012.[36]
- Complete video of debate, C-SPAN, October 15, 2012
- Complete video of debate, C-SPAN, October 25, 2012
Fundraising
| Candidate (party) | Receipts | Disbursements | Cash on hand | Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heidi Heitkamp (D) | $5,341,362 | $5,318,232 | $23,130 | $0 |
| Rick Berg (R) | $6,501,693 | $6,129,026 | $316,641 | $0 |
| Source: Federal Election Commission[37][38] | ||||
Top contributors
| Heidi Heitkamp | Contribution | Rick Berg | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Motley Rice LLC | $41,750 | Verizon Communications | $43,666 |
| Council for a Livable World | $26,705 | Elliott Management Corporation | $29,413 |
| Weitz & Luxenberg | $22,400 | NORPAC | $26,700 |
| Robbins, Geller Rudman, & Dowd LLP | $15,050 | Mewbourne Oil Co | $25,000 |
| Medcenter One Health Systems | $12,000 | Rurban Financial | $22,700 |
| American Association for Justice | $10,833 | Hess Corp | $22,500 |
| Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld | $10,750 | NACCO Industries | $22,000 |
| American Federation of Teachers | $10,300 | Marathon Oil | $21,000 |
| Patton Boggs LLP | $10,250 | Berkshire Hathaway | $20,500 |
| American Postal Workers Union | $10,000 | Koch Industries | $20,000 |
Top industries
| Heidi Heitkamp | Contribution | Rick Berg | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $433,811 | Oil & Gas | $433,949 |
| Leadership PACs | $284,500 | Leadership PACs | $277,163 |
| Women's Issues | $111,593 | Financial institutions | $274,941 |
| Lobbyists | $103,635 | Retired | $218,909 |
| Retired | $100,812 | Real Estate | $171,686 |
| Agribusiness | $78,450 | Agribusiness | $163,583 |
| Public Sector Unions | $73,800 | Insurance | $140,011 |
| Financial Institutions | $64,713 | Commercial Banks | $127,140 |
| Education | $60,960 | Health Professionals | $114,438 |
| Building Trade Unions | $52,500 | Mining | $106,804 |
Independent expenditures
In early October 2012, Crossroads GPS announced it would launch a $16 million advertising buy in national races, of which four were this and three other Senate elections.[41]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Heidi Heitkamp (D) |
Rick Berg (R) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharos Research | November 2–5, 2012 | 503 | n/a | 47% | 49% | — | 4% |
| Pharos Research | October 26–28, 2012 | 752 | ± 3.6% | 50% | 48% | — | 2% |
| Mason-Dixon | October 26–28, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 45% | 47% | — | 8% |
| Pharos Research | October 19–21, 2012 | 807 | ± 3.44% | 49% | 48% | — | 3% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 17–18, 2012 | 600 | ± 4% | 45% | 50% | — | 5% |
| Forum/Essman | October 12–15, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 40% | 50% | — | 10% |
| Mason-Dixon | October 3–5, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 47% | 47% | — | 6% |
| Rasmussen Reports | July 10–11, 2012 | 400 | ± 5% | 40% | 49% | 2% | 8% |
| Mason Dixon | June 4–6, 2012 | 625 | ± 4% | 47% | 46% | — | 7% |
| Forum/Essman | May 3–8, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.3% | 44% | 51% | — | 5% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Heidi Heitkamp | 161,337 | 50.24% | -18.26% | |
| Republican | Rick Berg | 158,401 | 49.32% | +20.04% | |
| Write-Ins | 1,406 | 0.44% | |||
| Majority | 2,936 | 1.0% | -38.3% | ||
| Turnout | 322,509 | ||||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
See also
- United States Senate elections, 2012
- United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota, 2012
- North Dakota gubernatorial election, 2012
References
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- ↑ 34.0 34.1 http://results.sos.nd.gov/resultsSW.aspx?text=Race&type=SW&map=CTY
- ↑ http://www.wday.com/event/article/id/68540
- ↑ PBS to broadcast North Dakota, Minnesota debates
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ NDS2, Center for Responsive Politics
- ↑ contributors by industry (opensecrets.org)
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External links
- North Dakota Secretary of State
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Outside spending at Sunlight Foundation
- Candidate issue positions at On the Issues
- Official campaign websites
