2012 United States Senate election in Wyoming

The 2012 United States Senate election in Wyoming took place on November 6, 2012, alongside a 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 Republican U.S. Senator John Barrasso won re-election to a first full term.

2012 United States Senate election in Wyoming

← 2008 (special) November 6, 2012 2018 →
Turnout	58.9% (voting eligible)[1]
Nominee John Barrasso Tim Chesnut Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 185,250 53,019 Percentage 75.66% 21.65%
County results Barrasso:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
U.S. senator before election John Barrasso Republican Elected U.S. Senator John Barrasso Republican

The primary elections were held on August 21, 2012.

Background

Republican state senator John Barrasso was appointed to the U.S. Senate on June 22, 2007, by then-governor Dave Freudenthal after U.S. Senator Craig Thomas died on June 4, 2007.^[2]

Barrasso defeated Nick Carter with 73.4% of the vote in a 2008 special election to serve the remainder of the senatorial term. He was highly popular in the state, with 69% of voters approving of him.^[3]

Republican primary

Candidates

• John Barrasso, incumbent U.S. senator^[4]
• Thomas Bleming, former soldier of fortune^[5][6]
• Emmett Mavy, management consultant^[7]

Results

Republican primary results^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John Barrasso (incumbent)	73,516	89.9
	Republican	Thomas Bleming	5,080	6.2
	Republican	Emmett Mavy	2,873	3.5
	Republican	Write-in	279	0.3
Total votes			81,748	100

Democratic primary

Candidates

• William Bryk, attorney from Brooklyn and perennial candidate^[7]
• Tim Chesnut, member of the Albany County Board of Commissioners^[7][9]
• Al Hamburg, retired painter and perennial candidate^[10]

Results

Results by county:

  Chesnut

•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   80–90%

Democratic primary results^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tim Chesnut	9,173	53.7
	Democratic	Al Hamburg	4,630	27.1
	Democratic	William Bryk	3,047	17.8
	Democratic	Write-in	222	1.3
Total votes			17,072	100

General election

Candidates

• John Barrasso (Republican), incumbent U.S. senator
• Tim Chesnut (Democratic), member of the Albany County Board of Commissioners
• Joel Otto (Wyoming Country), rancher^[11]

Debates

• Complete video of debate, October 31, 2012 - C-SPAN

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report[12]	Solid R	November 1, 2012
Sabato's Crystal Ball[13]	Safe R	November 5, 2012
Rothenberg Political Report[14]	Safe R	November 2, 2012
Real Clear Politics[15]	Safe R	November 5, 2012

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	John Barrasso (R)	Dave Freudenthal (D)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling[16]	January 4–5, 2011	1,039	±3.0%	56%	36%	—	9%

Hypothetical polling

John Barrasso vs. Dave Freudenthal

Results

United States Senate election in Wyoming, 2012^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	John Barrasso (incumbent)	185,250	75.66%	+2.31%
	Democratic	Tim Chesnut	53,019	21.65%	−4.88%
	Wyoming Country	Joel Otto	6,176	2.52%	N/A
	n/a	Write-ins	417	0.17%	+0.05%
Total votes			'244,862'	'100.0%'	N/A
	Republican hold

See also

• 2012 United States Senate elections
• 2012 United States House of Representatives election in Wyoming