2012 Arizona's 8th congressional district special election

2012 United States House of Representatives Special election in Arizona's 8th congressional district
Arizona's 8th congressional district
	County results; Barber: 50–60%; Kelly: 50–60%
U.S. Representative before election; Gabby Giffords; Democratic	Elected U.S. Representative ; Ron Barber; Democratic

A 2012 special election in Arizona's 8th congressional district was held on June 12, with primary elections held on April 17, to fill a seat in the United States House of Representatives for Arizona's 8th congressional district until the 112th United States Congress ends on January 3, 2013.^[1] The election was caused by the resignation of Representative Gabby Giffords on January 25, 2012, to concentrate on recovering from her injuries from the 2011 Tucson shooting.^[2] The seat was won by Ron Barber, a former aide to Giffords who was wounded in the attempt on her life.

Background

Governor of Arizona Jan Brewer announced April 17 to be the date for the special primary elections and June 12 for the special general election.^[3]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Ron Barber, small business owner and Giffords' District Director^[4]

Withdrawn

Matt Heinz, state representative^[5]^[6]

Declined

Paula Aboud, Arizona Senate Whip.^[7]^[8]
John Adams, retired Brigadier General^[9]
David Crowe, software company owner^[10]
Steve Farley, Arizona House of Representatives^[7]^[8]
Jeff Latas, former vice chair of the Arizona Democratic Party and 2006 primary candidate^[11]
Linda J. Lopez, state senator^[8]^[12]
Janet Napolitano, former Governor of Arizona and United States Secretary of Homeland Security^[13]
Daniel Patterson, state representative^[14]
Tim Sultan, program chair of the Democrats of Greater Tucson and 2004 primary candidate^[15]
Ramon Valadez, Pima County, Arizona Supervisor^[8]^[12]
Nan Stockholm Walden, Farmer Investments VP and former chief of staff to Senator Bill Bradley^[16]
Bruce Wheeler, state representative^[14]

Results

Democratic primary results^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ron Barber	44,185	100.0
Total votes			44,185	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Jesse Kelly, Iraq War veteran and nominee for this seat in 2010 Republican ^[18]

Eliminated in primary

Frank Antenori, state senator and Iraq War veteran^[8]
Martha McSally, U.S. Air Force colonel, first female USAF air combat pilot^[19]
Dave Sitton, businessman, broadcaster, and coach^[20]

Declined

Jonathan Paton, state senator and 2010 primary candidate^[21]

Results

Republican primary results^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jesse Kelly	27,101	35.1
	Republican	Martha McSally	19,413	25.1
	Republican	Frank Antenori	17,497	22.6
	Republican	Dave Sitton	13,299	17.2
Total votes			77,310	100

General election

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Ron Barber (D)	Jesse Kelly (R)	Charlie Manolakis (G)	Undecided
Public Policy Polling^[22]	June 9–10, 2012	1,058	± 3.0%	53%	41%	4%	3%
National Research (R)^[23]	April 12, 2012	300	±5.7%	45%	49%	—	6%

Hypothetical polling

With McSally

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Ron Barber (D)	Martha McSally (R)	Undecided
National Research (R)^[23]	April 12, 2012	300	±5.7%	42%	42%	16%

Results

Arizona's 8th congressional district, 2012 (special)^[24]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Ron Barber	111,204	52.32%	+3.56%
	Republican	Jesse Kelly	96,465	45.39%	−1.91%
	Green	Charlie Manolakis	4,869	2.29%	N/A
Total votes			'*212,538'*	'*100.0%'*	N/A
	Democratic hold

References

^ "Giffords to Resign From Congress". The Wall Street Journal. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ Espo, David (January 22, 2012). "Rep. Giffords to resign this week from Congress, focus on recovering from shooting injuries". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Washington. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ "Brewer Orders Special Election For June 12". The Huffington Post. January 27, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
^ "Giffords aide to run for seat in special election". AP. February 9, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
^ "Heinz for Congress". heinzforcongress.com.
^ Rep. Heinz pledged to drop out and endorse Ron Barber if he chose to run in the special election. Heinz will still run in the primary for the general election in the district, which was renumbered the 2nd in redistricting.
^ ^a ^b "Governor will declare April special election for Giffords' seat". KOLD. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Livingston, Abby (January 27, 2012). "Arizona: GOP State Senator Enters Race to Replace Giffords". Roll Call. Archived from the original on January 29, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
^ "Giffords resignation sets off competitive special election for her Ariz. House seat". The Hill. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ "With Giffords Stepping Down, Who Might Step Up?". National Journal. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ "Latas is Back". Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion. January 22, 2012. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ ^a ^b "Arizona Candidates Race for Giffords Seat". Roll Call. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
^ "Janet Napolitano Not Interested in Gabrielle Giffords' Seat". Roll Call. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Nintzel, Jim (January 26, 2012). "What's Next?". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
^ "Potential candidates for Giffords' seat begin to emerge". FOX 11. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2012.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "Giffords meets with supporters, says she'll run again". Green Valley News and Sun. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Special election canvass
^ Livingston, Abby (January 24, 2012). "Jesse Kelly to Run in Arizona Special Election". Roll Call. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
^ McCombs, Brady (February 9, 2012). "1st Female AF Air Combat Vet in Run for Congress". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
^ "Politicians Scramble to Fill Giffords' Void". Arizona Daily Star. February 3, 2012.
^ Smith, Dylan (January 25, 2012). "Paton to seek CD1 seat in Congress". Tucson Sentinel. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
^ Public Policy Polling
^ ^a ^b National Research (R)
^ 2012 General Election Canvass

External links

Ron Barber campaign site Archived February 13, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
Jesse Kelly campaign site

[1] "Giffords to Resign From Congress". The Wall Street Journal. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[2] Espo, David (January 22, 2012). "Rep. Giffords to resign this week from Congress, focus on recovering from shooting injuries". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Washington. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[huffpo-3] "Brewer Orders Special Election For June 12". The Huffington Post. January 27, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2012.

[4] "Giffords aide to run for seat in special election". AP. February 9, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2012.

[5] "Heinz for Congress". heinzforcongress.com.

[6] Rep. Heinz pledged to drop out and endorse Ron Barber if he chose to run in the special election. Heinz will still run in the primary for the general election in the district, which was renumbered the 2nd in redistricting.

[kold-7] "Governor will declare April special election for Giffords' seat". KOLD. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[antenori_rc-8] Livingston, Abby (January 27, 2012). "Arizona: GOP State Senator Enters Race to Replace Giffords". Roll Call. Archived from the original on January 29, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2012.

[9] "Giffords resignation sets off competitive special election for her Ariz. House seat". The Hill. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[10] "With Giffords Stepping Down, Who Might Step Up?". National Journal. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[11] "Latas is Back". Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion. January 22, 2012. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[rollcall.com-12] "Arizona Candidates Race for Giffords Seat". Roll Call. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2012.

[13] "Janet Napolitano Not Interested in Gabrielle Giffords' Seat". Roll Call. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2012.

[tw-14] Nintzel, Jim (January 26, 2012). "What's Next?". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved January 27, 2012.

[15] "Potential candidates for Giffords' seat begin to emerge". FOX 11. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2012.^{[permanent dead link]}

[16] "Giffords meets with supporters, says she'll run again". Green Valley News and Sun. January 22, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.

[azsos.gov-17] Special election canvass

[18] Livingston, Abby (January 24, 2012). "Jesse Kelly to Run in Arizona Special Election". Roll Call. Retrieved January 25, 2012.

[milcom20120209-19] McCombs, Brady (February 9, 2012). "1st Female AF Air Combat Vet in Run for Congress". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved February 10, 2012.

[20] "Politicians Scramble to Fill Giffords' Void". Arizona Daily Star. February 3, 2012.

[21] Smith, Dylan (January 25, 2012). "Paton to seek CD1 seat in Congress". Tucson Sentinel. Retrieved January 25, 2012.

[22] Public Policy Polling

[National_Research_R-23] National Research (R)

[24] 2012 General Election Canvass

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Background

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Withdrawn

Declined

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Declined

Results

General election

Polling

With McSally

Results

See also

References

External links