2012 United States presidential election in Oklahoma

2012 United States presidential election in Oklahoma

← 2008 November 6, 2012 2016 →

Nominee Mitt Romney Barack Obama Party Republican Democratic Home state Massachusetts Illinois Running mate Paul Ryan Joe Biden Electoral vote 7 0 Popular vote 891,325 443,547 Percentage 66.77% 33.23%

County results Precinct results Romney   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90-100% Obama   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% No votes

President before election Barack Obama Democratic Elected President Barack Obama Democratic

Elections in Oklahoma
Federal government Presidential elections 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Presidential primaries Democratic 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Republican 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Senate elections 1907 1909 1913 1914 1918 1920 1924 1926 1930 1932 1936 1938 1942 1944 1948 1950 1954 1956 1960 1962 1964 sp 1966 1968 1972 1974 1978 1980 1984 1986 1990 1992 1994 sp 1996 1998 2002 2004 2008 2010 2014 2014 sp 2016 2020 2022 2022 sp 2026 2028 House of Representatives elections 1907 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1919 5th sp 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1937 5th sp 1938 1940 1941 7th sp 1942 1944 2nd sp 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1st sp 6th sp 1996 1998 2000 2002 1st sp 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
State government State elections 1907 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 2026 Gubernatorial elections 1907 1910 1914 1918 1922 1926 1930 1934 1938 1942 1946 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026 Attorney General elections 2022 Treasurer elections 2022 Senate elections 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 2026 House of Representatives elections 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 2026
Ballot measures 2004 Question 711 2016 Question 777 2018 Question 788 2020 Question 802 2023 Question 820
Norman Mayoral elections 2022
Oklahoma City Mayoral elections 1911 2014 2018 2022
Tulsa Municipal elections 2022 2024 Mayoral elections 2002 2006 2009 2013 2016 2020 2024
Government
v t e

2012 U.S. presidential election
Timeline General election debates Electors Polling nationwide statewide Parties
Democratic Party
Candidates Primaries Results Nominee Convention
Republican Party
Prelude Candidates Debates and forums Primaries National polling Statewide polling Straw polls Results Nominee VP candidate selection Convention Endorsements
Minor parties
Libertarian Party candidates primaries nominee convention Green Party primaries nominee convention Constitution Party nominee convention Justice Party nominee Americans Elect All candidates
Related races
House Senate Governors Vice President Democratic Republican
← 2008 2012 2016 →
v t e

The 2012 United States presidential election in Oklahoma 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 chose seven 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. For the third election in a row since 2004, no third parties were allowed on the ballot.

With an extremely socially conservative electorate, Oklahoma has in recent years become one of the most Republican states in the nation. For the third cycle in a row, the Republicans won over 65% of the vote and swept every single county in the state.

With 66.77% of the popular vote to Obama's mere 33.23%, Mitt Romney carried almost exactly two thirds of the vote in the state while Obama merely carried one third. His vote share also the remains the third-highest for any Republican presidential candidate in Oklahoma history; as well as the strongest ever for a candidate who was not nationally successful. Oklahoma was Romney's third strongest state in the 2012 election, after Utah and Wyoming.^[1]

President Obama faced four challengers in Oklahoma's Democratic primary. Challenger Randall Terry took 12 counties with candidate Jim Rogers winning in three counties. Candidates Bob Ely and Darcy Richardson also appeared on Oklahoma's ballot but failed to obtain a majority of votes in any county.

2012 Oklahoma Democratic presidential primary[2]
Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Projected national delegates[2]
Barack Obama (incumbent)	64,259	57.07%	35
Randall Terry	20,294	18.02%	7
Jim Rogers	15,535	13.80%	3
Darcy Richardson	7,192	6.39%	0
Bob Ely	5,318	4.72%	0
Totals	112,598	100.00%	45

The Republican primary took place on Super Tuesday, March 6, 2012.^[3][4]

Oklahoma had 43 delegates to the 2012 Republican National Convention. Three superdelegates were unbound by the primary results. 15 delegates were allocated by congressional districts, with 3 delegates for each district. If a candidate got a majority of the vote in a district, he took all 3 delegates from that district; if no one got a majority, the delegates were split either 2-to-1 or 1-1-1 depending on how many candidates got at least 15% of the vote. Another 25 delegates were awarded to the candidate who won a majority in the state, or allocated proportionately among candidates winning at least 15% of the vote statewide if no one got a majority.^[5]

2012 Oklahoma Republican presidential primary[6]
Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Projected national delegates[7]
Rick Santorum	96,849	33.8%	14
Mitt Romney	80,356	28.0%	13
Newt Gingrich	78,730	27.5%	13
Ron Paul	27,596	9.6%	0
Rick Perry	1,291	0.45%	0
Michele Bachmann	951	0.33%	0
Jon Huntsman	750	0.26%	0
Unprojected delegates			3
Totals	286,523	100.0%	43

Fifteen delegates to the 2012 Republican national convention were elected at congressional-district conventions March 31 to April 14, 2012 — three from each of Oklahoma's five congressional districts.^[8][9]

The Oklahoma Republican State Convention was held May 11–12, 2012 in Norman. Irregularities were reported.^[8][10]

At least two Ron Paul supporters said they were physically attacked by Romney supporters.^[11][12]

Oklahoma's (Republican) Governor Mary Fallin tried to speak at the convention. After loud chants of "Ron Paul" from the floor, she stated (referring to Romney) "We have a presidential nominee", resulting in loud booing.^[12]

Paul supporters said that the convention was stopped with unfinished business, without a two-thirds vote, and therefore against parliamentary procedure.^[13] It was reported that, after the convention was said to be adjourned, a partition in the room was moved, isolating many attendees from the rest of the body. The lights were turned out momentarily.^[10]

After the convention was stopped and the chairman left, many Paul supporters assembled outside and held a rump convention, chaired by Jake Peters, at which they elected a slate of Paul supporters as delegates to the national convention.^[12][14]

Four Paul supporters, including Jake Peters, made a formal complaint to the Oklahoma Republican Party, saying that Party rules were broken by failing to take a roll-call vote on the delegate slate and that the convention was adjourned without the required vote. The complaint asserted that state law is involved in the Republican Party's nominating process and cited case law to the effect that party process should be considered "an integral part of the State's election system".^[13][15][16]

Romney won all 5 congressional districts.^[25]

As expected, Mitt Romney swept every county in the state, carrying 66.77% of the vote to Obama's measly 33.23%. Romney capitalized on his strength amongst white and conservative voters – Oklahoma's population is 65.6% white^[26] (a demographic Romney won nationwide by 59% to Obama's 39%)^[27] and the state has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+20, tied for the second most Republican in the nation along with Utah.^[28] His strongest performance was in the Oklahoma Panhandle, one of the most staunchly conservative regions in the country, where he garnered 80% to 90% of the vote in many of these counties. Romney also performed well in the Little Dixie region and on the state's border with Texas. Despite many counties having a plurality of registered Democratic voters exceeding the number of registered Republicans (such as Comanche and Okmulgee),^[29] Obama failed to carry any counties. However, Obama was still able to garner margins of around 45% to Romney's 55% in some counties, such as Cherokee County (Obama's best performance), which is 36.4% Native American and home to the capital of the Cherokee Nation, Tahlequah,^[30][31] and Muskogee County, which is located in the Creek Nation.^[32] He also had a formidable, but still lackluster, performance in Oklahoma County, home to the state's capital and largest city, Oklahoma City, which is quite conservative despite being the state's most urban region.

• United States presidential elections in Oklahoma
• 2012 Republican Party presidential debates and forums
• 2012 Republican Party presidential primaries
• Results of the 2012 Republican Party presidential primaries
• Oklahoma Republican Party

• The Green Papers: for Oklahoma
• The Green Papers: Major state elections in chronological order