2012 United States presidential election in New Jersey country United States of America
The 2012 United States presidential election in New Jersey took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the 2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Voters in the state chose 14 electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan.
Due to the difficulty of getting to polling places because of the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy, voters who were displaced were allowed to vote electronically. Officials were not prepared for the 15 minutes that it took to validate each request, and were deluged by voters who were not displaced asking to vote electronically, so voting was extended until Friday, November 9, at 8 PM. Requests had to be submitted by 5 PM. It is likely that Obama's response to the hurricane, approved by 77% of Obama voters (with 8% disapproving and 15% unsure) and 44% (with 21% disapproving and 35% unsure) of Romney's voters, boosted his performance in New Jersey, which was hit hard by the superstorm.New Jersey was won by President Obama with 58.38% of the vote to Romney's 40.59%, a 17.79% margin of victory, an increase from 15.53% in 2008. New Jersey was 1 of just 6 states to swing in President Obama's favor between 2008 and 2012, giving him the largest vote share for a Democratic presidential nominee in the state since Lyndon Johnson's 1964. Obama won over many municipalities in northeastern New Jersey that voted Republican in 2008.
In 2012, New Jersey voted 13.93% to the left of the nation as a whole. As of the 2020 presidential election, this is the last time a Democrat has won Salem County. This is also the last time that New Jersey voted to the left of Washington or Illinois.
Nation State Land Territory