# 2012 Vermont gubernatorial election

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vte :
The 2012 Vermont gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2012, to elect the Governor of Vermont. Incumbent Democratic Governor Peter Shumlin won re-election to a second term, making this the only one of his gubernatorial elections in which he won a majority of the vote. In his 2010 and 2014 races, the Vermont General Assembly was required to choose a winner in accordance with the state constitution, because no candidate won a majority.

## Democratic nomination
### Candidates

* Peter Shumlin, incumbent

## Republican nomination
### Candidates

* Randy Brock, state senator and former state auditor

#### Declined

* Brian Dubie, former lieutenant governor and 2010 gubernatorial nominee
* Thom Lauzon, mayor of Barre
* Patricia McDonald, Vermont Republican Party Chairwoman and former state representative
* Roy Newton, newspaper publisher (did not file)
* Tom Salmon, state auditor
* Phil Scott, lieutenant governor
* Mark Snelling, 2010 candidate for lieutenant governor and son of former governor Richard Snelling

## Progressive nomination
### Candidates

* Martha Abbott, chairwoman of the Vermont Progressive Party (resigned nomination in order to aid Shumlin by avoiding split in progressive/liberal votes)

## General election
### Candidates

* Randy Brock (R), state senator and former state auditor
* Dave Eagle (Liberty Union)
* Cris Ericson (U.S. Marijuana), perennial candidate who also ran for the U.S. Senate
* Emily Peyton (Independent)
* Peter Shumlin (D), incumbent

### Debates

* Complete video of debate, October 13, 2012 - C-SPAN

### Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Solid D | November 1, 2012 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe D | November 5, 2012 |
| Rothenberg Political Report | Safe D | November 2, 2012 |
| Real Clear Politics | Safe D | November 5, 2012 |

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Randy Brock (R) | Undecided |
| Castleton Polling | August 11–21, 2012 | 477 | ± 4.5% | 60% | 26% | 13% |
| Vermont Business Magazine | May 7–16, 2012 | 607 | ± 4.0% | 60% | 27% | 11% |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 51% | 29% | 20% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Brian Dubie (R) | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 48% | 40% | 12% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Thom Lauzon (R) | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 52% | 25% | 23% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Tom Salmon (R) | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 50% | 31% | 18% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Phil Scott (R) | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 50% | 33% | 17% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Peter Shumlin (D) | Mark Snelling (R) | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | July 28–31, 2011 | 1,233 | ± 2.8% | 50% | 29% | 21% |

### Results

2012 Vermont gubernatorial election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Peter Shumlin (incumbent) | 170,749 | 57.80% | +8.36% |
| | Republican | Randy Brock | 110,940 | 37.55% | −10.14% |
| | Independent | Emily Peyton | 5,868 | 1.99% | +1.71% |
| | Marijuana | Cris Ericson | 5,583 | 1.89% | +1.14% |
| | Liberty Union | Dave Eagle | 1,303 | 0.44% | +0.26% |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 969 | 0.33% | +0.06% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 295,412 | 100.00% | N/A |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

#### Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

* Grand Isle (largest municipality: Alburgh)
* Lamoille (largest municipality: Morristown)
* Rutland (largest municipality: Rutland)