New York's 18th Congressional District elections, 2012
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November 6, 2012 |
June 26, 2012 |
Sean Maloney |
Nita Lowey |
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The 18th Congressional District of New York held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Sean Maloney was elected on November 6, 2012.[1]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: New York has a closed primary system, meaning only registered members of a particular party may vote in that party's primary.
Voter registration: Voters had to register to vote in the primary by June 1, 2012. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 12, 2012 or October 26, 2012 in person.[2]
- See also: New York elections, 2012
Incumbent: Heading into the election was incumbent Nita Lowey (D), who was first elected to the House in 1988. Due to redistricting, Lowey ran in the redrawn 17th District, and 19th District incumbent Nan Hayworth ran in the new 18th.
This was the first election using district maps based on data from the 2010 Census. New York's 18th Congressional District is located in the southeastern portion of the state and includes Orange and Putnam counties and parts of Westchester and Putnam counties..[3]
Fusion voting
New York is one of eight states that have "electoral fusion" -- which allows more than one political party to support a common candidate. This creates a situation where one candidate will appear multiple times on the same ballot, for the same position. Electoral fusion was once widespread across the United States, but is now commonly practiced only in New York.
Opponents of fusion voting argue that the process results in dealmarking to ensure that patronage is rampant.[4] Proponents maintain that fusion voting allows for minor parties to actually make a difference during the election, allowing voters the opportunity to vote for a minority party platform but still affect the general election result.[5]
Candidates appearing in the general election will be listed below with colored dots corresponding to any party they will represent on the ballot.
Candidates
Note: Election results were added on election night as races were called. Vote totals were added after official election results had been certified. Click here for more information about Ballotpedia's election coverage plan. Please contact us about errors in this list.
General election candidates
June 26, 2012 primary results
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Election results
General Election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Sean Maloney |
51.9% | 143,845 | |
| Republican | Nan Hayworth Incumbent | 48% | 133,049 | |
| N/A | Write-in votes | 0.1% | 169 | |
| Total Votes | 277,063 | |||
| Source: New York State Board of Elections, "NYS Board of Elections Rep. in Congress Election Returns Nov. 6, 2012," accessed September 1, 2021 | ||||
Race background
General election
Competitiveness
New York's 18th was considered to be Leaning Republican according to the New York Times race ratings. Republican incumbent Nan Hayworth was challenged by Sean Maloney (D). Democrats made her a top target in 2012.[15]
Using the Federal Election Commission's October Quarterly campaign finance filings, the Brennan Center for Justice at The New York University School of Law published a report on October 22nd, 2012 focusing on the 25 House races rated most competitive by The Cook Political Report, including the race for New York's 18th. The report examined the relative spending presence of non-candidate groups, candidates, and small donors in these races - "which will likely determine which party will control the House."[16]
| List of 25 Toss Up Races from the Cook Political Report:[17] | |
|---|---|
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Democratic Toss Ups: Republican Toss Ups: | |
Incumbent Nan Hayworth raised more money in the NY House election than her opponent, a trend shared by 13 other Republicans in contested House races in 2012. She raised $2.2 million through June 30th, 2012, more than double the $738,382 she raised two years ago at that time. She had $1.5 million in the bank, compared to $775,000 four years ago. Her opponent, Sean Maloney in comparison had $264,364 in the bank and raised $675,771 through June 30th, 2012. Timothy Persico, Maloney’s campaign manager, alleged Hayworth was raising her money through special interests-“PACS and corporate lobbyists have sent over a million dollars to Congresswoman Hayworth because she’s worth every penny.”[18]
New York's 18th District had been included in the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's "Red to Blue List," which identified districts that the organization had specifically targeted to flip from Republican to Democratic control.[19]
Incumbent Nan Hayworth was a part of the National Republican Congressional Committee's Patriot Program, a program to help House Republicans stay on offense and increase their majority in 2012.[20]
Democratic primary
A field of five Democrats sought their party's nod in the June 26, 2012 primary.
According to The New York Times, cardiologist and Cortlandt town council member[21] Rich Becker and former Bill Clinton aide Sean Maloney were the frontrunners. The Times endorsed Becker, based on the paper's concerns about Maloney's handling of an investigation of Eliot Spitzer.[22] Maloney, unsurprisingly, gained the endorsement of his former boss, Bill Clinton,[22] along with the nod from major unions in the state, including the New York State United Teachers, the state AFL-CIO, and some large SEIU locals.[23]
Wrappinger Falls Mayor Matt Alexander,[24] Tuxedo Park Mayor Tom Wilson,[25] and local hero Duane Jackson also ran.[23] Jackson, a street vendor, thwarted a bomb attempt in Times Square.[23]
Maloney stressed his endorsements, as well as his fundraising advantage over the rest of the Democratic candidates -- the funding, he said, would be necessary to unseat Hayworth in the general. Alexander, on the other hand, said that money would pour in to whoever opposed Hayworth.[9]
Independence Ticket
Hayworth had been removed from the Independence ticket by the state appeals court, upholding a ruling by the state Supreme Court that only the names on her petition that were signed were valid. The names printed on the petition were not counted and as a result, Hayworth did not have enough signatures to remain on the Independence ticket. In 2010, she received 5,400 Independence votes. The loss of the Independence votes in the 2012 election is expected to tighten the race.[26]
Impact of redistricting
- See also: Redistricting in New York
Following the results of the 2010 Census, New York lost two congressional seats, bringing its total number of representatives down from 29 to 27.
Under the new map, the district was less strongly Democratic.[27]
According to a report in the Washington Post political blog "The Fix," New York was home one of the top 10 redistricting battles in the nation.[28]
The 18th District was re-drawn after the 2010 Census. The new district is composed of the following percentages of voters of the old congressional districts.[29][30]
- 1 percent from the 18th Congressional District
- 76 percent from the 19th Congressional District
- 2 percent from the 20th Congressional District
- 21 percent from the 22nd Congressional District
Registration statistics
As of October 29, 2012, District 18 had the following partisan registration breakdown according to the New York State Board of Elections:
| New York Congressional District 18[31] | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Congressional District | District Total | Democrats | Republicans | Other & Unaffiliated | Advantage | Party Advantage | Change in Advantage from 2010 |
| District 18 | 398,487 | 139,614 | 134,224 | 124,649 | Democratic | 4.02% | -74.31% |
| "Party advantage" is the percentage gap between the two major parties in registered voters. "Change in advantage" is the spread in difference of party advantage between 2010 and 2012 based on the congressional district number only. | |||||||
District partisanship
FairVote's Monopoly Politics 2012 study
- See also: FairVote's Monopoly Politics 2012
In 2012, FairVote did a study on partisanship in the congressional districts, giving each a percentage ranking (D/R) based on the new 2012 maps and comparing that to the old 2010 maps. New York's 18th District became more balanced because of redistricting.[32]
- 2012: 49D / 51R
- 2010: 48D / 52R
Cook Political Report's PVI
In 2012, Cook Political Report released its updated figures on the Partisan Voter Index, which measured each congressional district's partisanship relative to the rest of the country. New York's 18th Congressional District had a PVI of R+2, which was the 215th most Republican district in the country. In 2008, this district was won by Barack Obama (D), 52-48 percent over John McCain (R). In 2004, George W. Bush (R) won the district 54-46 percent over John Kerry (D).[33]
District history
| Candidate ballot access |
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2010
On November 2, 2010, Nita Lowey was re-elected to the United States House for a twelfth term. She defeated Jim Russell (R who also ran on the Conservative Party ticket).[34]
| U.S. House, New York Congressional District 18 General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Nita M. Lowey Incumbent |
61.7% | 115,619 | |
| Republican | Jim Russell | 33% | 61,845 | |
| Blank/Scattering | 5.3% | 9,900 | ||
| Total Votes | 187,364 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in New York, 2012
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2012
- United States Senate elections in New York, 2012
Footnotes
- ↑ York ABC News, "2012 General Election Results," accessed November 6, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "Voting Deadline Page," accessed June 30, 2012
- ↑ New York Redistricting Map, "Map" accessed September 25, 2012
- ↑ Clarence Bee, "State Senate candidate calls for an end to fusion voting", accessed September 19, 2013
- ↑ Oregon Working Family Party, "What is Fusion Voting?", accessed September 19, 2013
- ↑ PolitickerNY "Democrat emerges to take on Nan Hayworth," accessed December 23, 2011
- ↑ PolitickerNY "Hayworth opponent officially declares campaign," November 10, 2011
- ↑ Tom Wilson campaign site "Wilson announces campaign for New York's 19th Congressional District," January 17, 2012
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 New York Board of Elections "Filings for June 26, 2012 Federal Primary," April 17, 2012 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "ny" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ New York Board of Elections "Filings for June 26, 2012 Federal Primary," April 18, 2012
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 New York Board of Elections "List of Filings for June 26, 2012 Federal Primary," accessed May 30, 2012
- ↑ New York Elections "2012 Candidate List" accessed October 17, 2012
- ↑ New York Elections "2012 Candidate List" accessed October 17, 2012
- ↑ Record Online "Court says Rep. Hayworth can't run on Independence Party line" accessed August 21, 2012
- ↑ New York Times, "House Race Ratings," accessed August 10, 2012
- ↑ Brennan Center for Justice, "Election Spending 2012: 25 Toss-Up House Races," October 22, 2012
- ↑ The Cook Political Report, "House: Race Ratings," updated October 18, 2012
- ↑ “Republicans Outraising Democratic Rivals In House Races” Bloomberg.com Accessed August 2, 2012
- ↑ DCCC, "Red to Blue 2012"
- ↑ NRCC "Patriot Program 2012"
- ↑ Somers Daily Voice, "New York Times Endorses Becker In Democratic Primary," June 19, 2012
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 New York Times, "Primary Day Is June 26," June 15, 2012
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Policker, "Sean Patrick Maloney Rolling Up Labor Support," June 8, 2012
- ↑ PolitickerNY "Hayworth opponent officially declares campaign," November 10, 2011
- ↑ Tom Wilson campaign site, "Wilson announces campaign for New York's 19th Congressional District," January 17, 2012
- ↑ Record Online, "Court says Rep. Hayworth can't run on Independence Party line" accessed August 21, 2012
- ↑ Politico, "Incumbents at risk in final N.Y. map," March 19, 2012
- ↑ Washington Post, "The Fix," "Redistricting battles hit a fever pitch," June 3, 2011
- ↑ Moonshadow Mobile's CensusViewer, "New York's congressional districts 2001-2011 comparison"
- ↑ Labels & Lists, "VoterMapping software voter counts"
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "District Active Enrollment 2012," April, 2012
- ↑ "2011 Redistricting and 2012 Elections in New York," September 2012
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" accessed October 2012
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
