‹ 2008  2016 ›
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| 2012 United States presidential election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 6, 2012 | ||||
| Turnout | 55.3%▼2.9 pp | |||
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| Nominee | Mitt Romney | Joe Biden | ||
| Party | Republican | Democratic | ||
| Home state | Massachussets | Delaware | ||
| Running mate | Mike Huckabee | Chris Dodd | ||
| Electoral vote | 284 | 254 | ||
| States carried | 31 | 19+D.C. | ||
| Popular vote | 65,661,103 | 60,103,827 | ||
| Percentage | 51% | 48% | ||
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| Presidential election results map. Red denotes those won by Romney/Huckabee, blue those won by Biden/Dodd. | ||||
President before election
Mitt Romney Republican Party
Elected President
Mitt Romney Republican Party | ||||
The 2012 United States presidential election was the 57th quadrennial presidential election in the United States, held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. The incumbent Republican President Mitt Romney and his running mate, Vice-President Mike Huckabee, were re-elected to a second and final term. They defeated the Democratic ticket of Senior U.S. Senator from Delaware, Joe Biden and former U.S. Senator from Connecticut, Chris Dodd.
President Romney did not face serious opposition in getting his party's nomination. The Democratic primary was heavily competitive, however, by Super Tuesday, U.S. Senator from Delaware, Joe Biden, emerged as the frontrunner. Biden nominated former Senator from Connecticut, Chris Dodd as his running mate.
The election pivoted around foreign issues, due to a strong economy and the President's centrist views when it came to social programs. The United States response to the crises in Libia and Syria became key in the campaign, Romney positioned himself as a pragmatic when it came to intervening in both countries, with Biden arguing the U.S. should have a more active role in protecting and establishing democracy abroad.
Romney defeated Biden winning a majority of the popular, and electoral vote, he gained 284 votes, outperfoming his 2008 outcome by 10. He gained support among Hispanic and Latino voters in the Sun Belt and lost support among working class citizens in the Rust Belt with Biden winning back Michigan and West Virginia. Romney was the first two-term Republican since Ronald Reagan. The election was the first time since 2004 when a candidate won an ouright majority of the popular vote. Ross Perot Jr. sought the presidency for the second time but failed to capture the enthusiasm he had in the 2008 election, this election marks the first time when a third party presidential candidate failed to receive more than 3% of the vote.