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Florida elections, 2012
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Florida's 2012 elections U.S. Senate • U.S. House • State Senate • State House • State ballot measures • Candidate ballot access |
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| Other elections | |
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| Contents |
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| 1 2012 Elections |
| 2 Eligibility to Vote |
| 2.1 Primary election |
| 2.2 General election |
| 3 Voting absentee |
| 3.1 Eligibility |
| 3.2 Deadlines |
| 3.3 Military and overseas voting |
| 4 Voting early |
| 5 See also |
| 6 References |
The state of Florida held elections in 2012. Below are the dates of note:
- Signature filing deadline: February 1, 2012 (Measures only) & June 8, 2012
- Primary date: August 14, 2012
- General election date: November 6, 2012
| On the 2012 ballot | Click here for all November 6, 2012 Election Results | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Senate (1 seat) | Preview Article | ||
| U.S. House (27 seats) | |||
| State Executives | N/A | ||
| State Senate (40 seats) | Preview Article | ||
| State House (120 seats) | |||
| Ballot measures (11 measures) | Preview Article | ||
2012 Elections
For election results in the 50 states, see our November 6, 2012 election results page
Elections by type
U.S. Senate
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Bill Nelson Incumbent |
55.2% | 4,523,451 | |
| Republican | Connie Mack | 42.2% | 3,458,267 | |
| Independent | Bill Gaylor | 1.5% | 126,079 | |
| Independent | Chris Borgia | 1% | 82,089 | |
| N/A | Write-ins | 0% | 60 | |
| Total Votes | 8,189,946 | |||
| Source: Florida Election Watch "U.S. Senator" | ||||
U.S. House
Florida received two additional seats from redistricting.
| Members of the U.S. House from Florida -- Partisan Breakdown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 6 | 10 | |
| Republican Party | 19 | 17 | |
| Total | 25 | 27 | |
State Senate
- See also: Florida State Senate elections, 2012
Heading into the election, Republicans maintained partisan control in the state senate.
| Florida State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 12 | 14 | |
| Republican Party | 28 | 26 | |
| Total | 40 | 40 | |
State House
Heading into the election, Republicans maintained partisan control in the state house.
| Florida House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 38 | 46 | |
| Republican Party | 81 | 74 | |
| Vacancy | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 120 | 120 | |
Ballot measures
- See also: Florida 2012 ballot measures
November 6, 2012
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amendment 10 | Taxes; Property | Provide a tangible personal property exemption on ad valorem taxes and allow counties and municipalities to establish tangible personal property tax exemptions |
|
3,432,905 (45%) |
4,113,395 (55%) |
|
| Amendment 11 | Taxes | Allow municipalities and counties to create additional homestead tax exemptions for low-income people above the age of 65 who meet certain requirements |
|
4,717,827 (61%) |
2,984,270 (39%) |
|
| Amendment 12 | Higher education governance | Have the chair of the council of state university student body presidents replace the president of the Florida Student Association as the student member of the Board of Governors of the State University System |
|
3,060,425 (42%) |
4,306,068 (58%) |
|
| Amendment 1 | Private health insurance; Public health insurance | Prohibit compulsory health insurance and permit the direct payment of health care expenses |
|
3,632,315 (49%) |
3,856,608 (51%) |
|
| Amendment 2 | Taxes; Property; Veterans | Expand the availability of the homestead property tax discount for veterans injured in combat |
|
4,907,341 (63%) |
2,850,880 (37%) |
|
| Amendment 3 | Education; Budgets | Increase the state's revenue limitation and require excess funds be deposited into a budget stabilization fund until the fund hits its maximum, at which time the money first be spent on public education and then additional excess funds be returned to the taxpayers |
|
3,204,350 (42%) |
4,346,740 (58%) |
|
| Amendment 4 | Taxes; Property | Amend the calculations for property assessments and allow for the establishment of an additional homestead tax exemption |
|
3,244,138 (43%) |
4,268,467 (57%) |
|
| Amendment 5 | Judiciary | Amend the state constitution relative to the changing of court rules, require senatorial approval of state Supreme Court justice appointments, and change the process for judicial impeachments |
|
2,728,008 (37%) |
4,654,167 (63%) |
|
| Amendment 6 | Abortion | Prohibit the use of public funds for abortions or health insurance that includes coverage of abortion, with exceptions |
|
3,511,354 (45%) |
4,308,408 (55%) |
|
| Amendment 8 | Religion | Prohibit denials of governmental support on the basis of religious beliefs and allow the use of revenue from the public treasury to fund religious institutions |
|
3,441,128 (45%) |
4,286,376 (55%) |
|
| Amendment 9 | Law enforcement; Taxes; Veterans | Allow for a ad valorem homestead property tax exemption for surviving spouses of those killed in their work as a first responder or in the military |
|
4,747,536 (62%) |
2,950,083 (38%) |
Local measures
Ballotpedia tracked local ballot elections in 11 states. Those states included: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.
For the state of Florida, below is a glimpse of some of the local measures that appeared or were scheduled to appear on ballots in 2012.
- Oviedo Referendum Question (November 2012)
- Longwood Referendum Question (November 2012)
- Longwood AMD Questions, 3 (November 2012)
- Casselberry Referendum Question (November 2012)
- Seminole County Referendum Question (November 2012)
- North Port Ordinance No. 2012-15 Question (November 2012)
- North Port City Auditor Removal Amendment Question (November 2012)
- North Port City Manager Removal Amendment Question (November 2012)
- North Port City Mayoral Title Amendment Question (November 2012)
- North Port City District Residency Requirement Amendment Question (November 2012)
...click here for all 2012 Florida local measures.
Eligibility to Vote
Primary election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 primary elections
Florida was one of 21 states to use a strictly closed primary system. Voters were required to register to vote in the primary by July 16, 2012, which was 29 days before the primary took place.[1] (Information about registering to vote)
General election
- See also: Voting in the 2012 general elections
The deadline to register to vote was 28 days prior to the election day, which in 2012 was October 9.[2]
Note: Some states had a voter registration deadline 30 days prior to the election but because this may have falled on a weekend and Columbus Day was on Monday, October 8th, some states extended the deadline to October 9, 2012.
- Voter ID info
- Residency requirements: Legal resident of Florida[2]
- Same-day registration: None
Voting absentee
- See also: Absentee Voting
All voters are eligible to vote by mail in Florida. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting by mail.[3]
To vote by mail, an application must be received by 5:00 p.m. on the 12th day before the election. Election officials must mail the ballot out within 2 business days after a request, but no later than the 10th day before election day.[3]
A returned ballot must then be received by election officials by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day.[3]
Voting early
- See also: Early voting
Florida is one of 34 states that permits early voting with no specific restrictions as to who can vote early. Early voting begins at least 10 days before an election and ends three days prior to Election Day.[4]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Florida Department of State, "Register to Vote," accessed April 25, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Florida Election Division, "2012 Voter Guide" accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Florida Division of Elections, "Vote-by-Mail," accessed July 23, 2024
- ↑ Florida Division of Elections Website, "Early Voting," accessed December 18, 2013
