2012 United States presidential election in Illinois Turnout 69.70%
County Results
Congressional District Results
Precinct Results
Obama
40-50%
50-60%
60-70%
70-80%
80-90%
90-100%
Romney
40-50%
50-60%
60-70%
70-80%
80-90%
90-100%
The 2012 United States presidential election in Illinois 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. Illinois voters chose 20 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 . The Obama/Biden ticket won Illinois with 57.50% of the popular vote to Romney/Ryan's 40.66%, thus winning the state's twenty electoral votes by a margin of 16.84%.[ 1]
Obama's victory continued a Democratic winning streak in the state — with the Democratic candidate having carried Illinois through six consecutive elections. However, despite Obama's win in 2008 and popularity in the state due to being its former U.S. Senator, his performance significantly worsened, with his margin of victory decreasing from 25.10% to 16.84% and losing 23 counties to Romney that he had won four years prior. Obama further became the first ever Democrat to win the White House without carrying Gallatin or Macoupin Counties, as well as the first since Woodrow Wilson in 1916 to win the White House without carrying Madison County . While Obama only won 23% of the counties in Illinois, most of the counties he won were heavily populated. His 17-point victory is attributed to his landslide performance in Cook County where he received 73.88% of the vote and victories in the once Republican-favored collar counties (DuPage , Will and Lake ). He also performed well in the East St. Louis area.
Cook County, which encompasses the Chicago Metropolitan Area , provides a crucial advantage for the Democratic Party. If Cook County's vote were excluded, Romney would have won the state with 1,639,684 to Obama's 1,530,975.
As of the 2024 presidential election , this is the last time a Democrat has won Alexander , Carroll , Fulton , Henderson , Henry , Jo Daviess , Knox , Mercer , Putnam , Warren , and Whiteside counties. Also, as a result of this election, Clark , Clay , Effingham , Edwards , Iroquois , Jasper , Massac , Richland , Wabash , and Wayne are the only counties in the state that never voted for Obama in his two runs for the presidency or in his landslide election to the Senate .
2012 Illinois Democratic presidential primary
Candidate
Barack Obama
Home state
Illinois
Delegate count
189
Popular vote
652,583
Percentage
99.98%
The 2012 Illinois Democratic presidential primary was held on March 20, 2012, in the U.S. state of Illinois as one of the Republican Party's state primaries ahead of the 2012 presidential election. Incumbent president Barack Obama won the primary. Obama was running for reelection without a major opponent.
Obama won all 189 of the state's bound delegates (the state also had 26 superdelegates ).[ 2]
2012 Illinois Democratic presidential primary[ 2] [ 3]
Candidate
Votes
Percentage
Delegates
Barack Obama (incumbent)
652,583
99.98%
189
Randall Terry
134
0.02%
0
Totals
652,717
100.00%
189
2012 Illinois Republican presidential primary
County resultsRomney: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% Santorum: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70%
The 2012 Illinois Republican presidential primary was held on March 20, 2012, in the U.S. state of Illinois as one of the Republican Party's state primaries ahead of the 2012 presidential election.[ 4] [ 5] For the state-run primaries (Democratic and Republican), turnout was 21.72%, with 1,586,171 votes cast.[ 3]
The 2012 Illinois Green Party Convention was held on February 24, and saw a binding presidential preference vote cast, awarding delegates, as part of the Green Party's state primaries ahead of the 2012 presidential election.[ 7]
Unlike the primaries for the major parties, this primary was run by the Green Party of Illinois itself, rather than by the state.
Illinois Green Party Primary, February 24, 2012[ 7] [ 8]
Candidate
Votes
Percentage
National delegates
Jill Stein
109
71.24%
22
Roseanne Barr (write-in)
27
17.65%
5
Kent Mesplay
8
5.23%
2
Uncommitted
8
5.23%
2
Others
1
0.65%
0
Total
153
100%
31
County
Barack Obama Democratic
Mitt Romney Republican
Various candidates Other parties
Margin
Total votes cast
#
%
#
%
#
%
#
%
Adams
9,648
31.43%
20,416
66.51%
633
2.06%
-10,768
-35.08%
30,697
Alexander
1,965
56.13%
1,487
42.47%
49
1.40%
478
13.66%
3,501
Bond
3,020
40.95%
4,095
55.53%
260
3.52%
-1,075
-14.58%
7,375
Boone
9,883
46.09%
11,096
51.75%
462
2.16%
-1,213
-5.66%
21,441
Brown
787
33.29%
1,513
64.00%
64
2.71%
-726
-30.71%
2,364
Bureau
8,134
48.75%
8,164
48.93%
388
2.32%
-30
-0.18%
16,686
Calhoun
1,080
41.93%
1,440
55.90%
56
2.17%
-360
-13.97%
2,576
Carroll
3,665
49.49%
3,555
48.00%
186
2.51%
110
1.49%
7,406
Cass
2,053
42.09%
2,707
55.49%
118
2.42%
-654
-13.40%
4,878
Champaign
40,831
51.94%
35,312
44.92%
2,466
3.14%
5,519
7.02%
78,609
Christian
5,494
37.31%
8,885
60.33%
348
2.36%
-3,391
-23.02%
14,727
Clark
2,591
32.86%
5,144
65.23%
151
1.91%
-2,553
-32.37%
7,886
Clay
1,584
26.81%
4,190
70.92%
134
2.27%
-2,606
-44.11%
5,908
Clinton
5,596
33.95%
10,524
63.86%
361
2.19%
-4,928
-29.91%
16,481
Coles
9,262
43.21%
11,631
54.26%
544
2.53%
-2,369
-11.05%
21,437
Cook
1,488,537
73.88%
495,542
24.59%
30,740
1.53%
992,995
49.29%
2,014,819
Crawford
2,858
33.11%
5,585
64.69%
190
2.20%
-2,727
-31.58%
8,633
Cumberland
1,641
30.99%
3,509
66.27%
145
2.74%
-1,868
-35.28%
5,295
DeKalb
21,207
51.42%
18,934
45.91%
1,100
2.67%
2,273
5.51%
41,241
DeWitt
2,601
35.30%
4,579
62.15%
188
2.55%
-1,978
-26.85%
7,368
Douglas
2,430
30.68%
5,334
67.34%
157
1.98%
-2,904
-36.66%
7,921
DuPage
199,460
49.73%
195,046
48.63%
6,575
1.64%
4,414
1.10%
401,081
Edgar
2,565
32.74%
5,132
65.50%
138
1.76%
-2,567
-32.76%
7,835
Edwards
754
23.36%
2,405
74.50%
69
2.14%
-1,651
-51.14%
3,228
Effingham
3,861
23.24%
12,501
75.25%
251
1.51%
-8,640
-52.01%
16,613
Fayette
2,853
31.66%
5,951
66.03%
208
2.31%
-3,098
-34.37%
9,012
Ford
1,656
27.49%
4,229
70.20%
139
2.31%
-2,573
-42.71%
6,024
Franklin
7,254
40.49%
10,267
57.31%
393
2.20%
-3,013
-16.82%
17,914
Fulton
8,328
54.04%
6,632
43.03%
451
2.93%
1,696
11.01%
15,411
Gallatin
1,029
39.99%
1,492
57.99%
52
2.02%
-463
-18.00%
2,573
Greene
2,023
35.89%
3,451
61.22%
163
2.89%
-1,428
-25.33%
5,637
Grundy
9,451
44.34%
11,343
53.22%
519
2.44%
-1,892
-8.88%
21,313
Hamilton
1,269
32.20%
2,566
65.11%
106
2.69%
-1,297
-32.91%
3,941
Hancock
3,650
40.06%
5,271
57.85%
190
2.09%
-1,621
-17.79%
9,111
Hardin
742
31.85%
1,535
65.88%
53
2.27%
-793
-34.03%
2,330
Henderson
1,978
55.44%
1,541
43.19%
49
1.37%
437
12.25%
3,568
Henry
12,332
50.53%
11,583
47.46%
490
2.01%
749
3.07%
24,405
Iroquois
3,413
26.64%
9,120
71.19%
278
2.17%
-5,707
-44.55%
12,811
Jackson
13,319
55.26%
9,864
40.92%
921
3.82%
3,455
14.34%
24,104
Jasper
1,436
28.48%
3,514
69.68%
93
1.84%
-2,078
-41.20%
5,043
Jefferson
6,089
37.31%
9,811
60.12%
420
2.57%
-3,722
-22.81%
16,320
Jersey
3,667
36.67%
6,039
60.38%
295
2.95%
-2,372
-23.71%
10,001
Jo Daviess
5,667
49.58%
5,534
48.42%
228
2.00%
133
1.16%
11,429
Johnson
1,572
27.61%
3,963
69.60%
159
2.79%
-2,391
-41.99%
5,694
Kane
90,332
49.71%
88,335
48.61%
3,058
1.68%
1,997
1.10%
181,725
Kankakee
21,595
47.30%
23,136
50.68%
923
2.02%
-1,541
-3.38%
45,654
Kendall
22,471
47.39%
24,047
50.71%
900
1.90%
-1,576
-3.32%
47,418
Knox
13,451
57.59%
9,408
40.28%
497
2.13%
4,043
17.31%
23,356
Lake
153,757
53.48%
129,764
45.14%
3,972
1.38%
23,993
8.34%
287,493
LaSalle
23,073
48.67%
23,256
49.06%
1,076
2.27%
-183
-0.39%
47,405
Lawrence
2,011
33.58%
3,857
64.40%
121
2.02%
-1,846
-30.82%
5,989
Lee
6,937
45.20%
8,059
52.51%
352
2.29%
-1,122
-7.31%
15,348
Livingston
5,020
33.30%
9,753
64.69%
304
2.01%
-4,733
-31.39%
15,077
Logan
3,978
32.91%
7,844
64.89%
266
2.20%
-3,866
-31.98%
12,088
Macon
22,780
46.46%
25,309
51.62%
941
1.92%
-2,529
-5.16%
49,030
Macoupin
9,464
44.89%
10,946
51.92%
673
3.19%
-1,482
-7.03%
21,083
Madison
58,922
47.95%
60,608
49.32%
3,355
2.73%
-1,686
-1.37%
122,885
Marion
6,225
39.35%
9,248
58.46%
347
2.19%
-3,023
-19.11%
15,820
Marshall
2,455
41.83%
3,290
56.06%
124
2.11%
-835
-14.23%
5,869
Mason
2,867
45.54%
3,265
51.86%
164
2.60%
-398
-6.32%
6,296
Massac
2,092
32.21%
4,278
65.87%
125
1.92%
-2,186
-33.66%
6,495
McDonough
5,967
47.91%
6,147
49.36%
340
2.73%
-180
-1.45%
12,454
McHenry
59,797
44.55%
71,598
53.34%
2,842
2.11%
-11,801
-8.79%
134,237
McLean
31,883
43.40%
39,947
54.37%
1,639
2.23%
-8,064
-10.97%
73,469
Menard
2,100
34.14%
3,948
64.18%
103
1.68%
-1,848
-30.04%
6,151
Mercer
4,507
52.60%
3,876
45.24%
185
2.16%
631
7.36%
8,568
Monroe
6,215
35.53%
10,888
62.24%
391
2.23%
-4,673
-26.71%
17,494
Montgomery
5,058
41.50%
6,776
55.60%
354
2.90%
-1,718
-14.10%
12,188
Morgan
5,806
41.06%
7,972
56.37%
364
2.57%
-2,166
-15.31%
14,142
Moultrie
2,144
35.29%
3,784
62.29%
147
2.42%
-1,640
-27.00%
6,075
Ogle
9,514
40.72%
13,422
57.44%
431
1.84%
-3,908
-16.72%
23,367
Peoria
40,209
51.28%
36,774
46.90%
1,428
1.82%
3,435
4.38%
78,411
Perry
3,819
39.99%
5,507
57.67%
223
2.34%
-1,688
-17.68%
9,549
Piatt
3,090
35.35%
5,413
61.92%
239
2.73%
-2,323
-26.57%
8,742
Pike
2,278
31.20%
4,860
66.56%
164
2.24%
-2,582
-35.36%
7,302
Pope
650
29.25%
1,512
68.05%
60
2.70%
-862
-38.80%
2,222
Pulaski
1,389
46.12%
1,564
51.93%
59
1.95%
-175
-5.81%
3,012
Putnam
1,559
49.60%
1,502
47.79%
82
2.61%
57
1.81%
3,143
Randolph
5,759
39.89%
8,290
57.42%
389
2.69%
-2,531
-17.53%
14,438
Richland
2,362
32.44%
4,756
65.31%
164
2.25%
-2,394
-32.87%
7,282
Rock Island
39,157
60.04%
24,934
38.23%
1,126
1.73%
14,223
21.81%
65,217
Saline
3,701
34.52%
6,806
63.49%
213
1.99%
-3,105
-28.97%
10,720
Sangamon
42,107
44.65%
50,225
53.26%
1,965
2.09%
-8,118
-8.61%
94,297
Schuyler
1,727
44.26%
2,069
53.02%
106
2.72%
-342
-8.76%
3,902
Scott
910
35.44%
1,587
61.80%
71
2.76%
-677
-26.36%
2,568
Shelby
3,342
32.01%
6,843
65.55%
254
2.44%
-3,501
-33.54%
10,439
St. Clair
67,285
56.15%
50,125
41.83%
2,417
2.02%
17,160
14.32%
119,827
Stark
1,095
41.13%
1,528
57.40%
39
1.47%
-433
-16.27%
2,662
Stephenson
10,165
48.11%
10,512
49.75%
451
2.14%
-347
-1.64%
21,128
Tazewell
24,438
39.88%
35,335
57.66%
1,509
2.46%
-10,897
-17.78%
61,282
Union
3,137
37.71%
4,957
59.59%
224
2.70%
-1,820
-21.88%
8,318
Vermilion
12,878
42.36%
16,892
55.57%
630
2.07%
-4,014
-13.21%
30,400
Wabash
1,590
30.97%
3,478
67.74%
66
1.29%
-1,888
-36.77%
5,134
Warren
4,044
51.73%
3,618
46.28%
156
1.99%
426
5.45%
7,818
Washington
2,450
32.95%
4,792
64.45%
193
2.60%
-2,342
-31.50%
7,435
Wayne
1,514
19.67%
5,988
77.80%
195
2.53%
-4,474
-58.13%
7,697
White
2,188
30.90%
4,731
66.80%
163
2.30%
-2,543
-35.90%
7,082
Whiteside
14,833
57.43%
10,448
40.45%
547
2.12%
4,385
16.98%
25,828
Will
144,229
51.85%
128,969
46.36%
4,967
1.79%
15,260
5.49%
278,165
Williamson
10,647
36.40%
17,909
61.22%
698
2.38%
-7,262
-24.82%
29,254
Winnebago
61,732
51.70%
55,138
46.18%
2,527
2.12%
6,594
5.52%
119,397
Woodford
5,572
29.42%
12,961
68.44%
405
2.14%
-7,389
-39.02%
18,938
Totals
3,019,512
57.50%
2,135,216
40.66%
96,704
1.84%
884,296
16.84%
5,251,432
[ 16]
County Flips: Democratic Hold
Republican Hold
Gain from Democratic
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
By congressional district [ edit ]
Obama won 12 of 18 congressional districts.[ 17]
^ a b Borgsmiller, Rupert T. (Executive Director) (December 12, 2012). Official Canvass of the Illinois 2012 General Election . Springfield, Illinois : Illinois State Board of Elections . Retrieved January 16, 2024 .
^ a b "Illinois Democratic Delegation 2012" . www.thegreenpapers.com . The Green Papers. Retrieved March 24, 2020 .
^ a b c Borgsmiller, Rupert T. (Executive Director) (March 20, 2012). Official Canvass of the Illinois 2012 Primary Election . Springfield, Illinois : Illinois State Board of Elections . Retrieved January 16, 2024 .
^ "Primary and Caucus Printable Calendar" . CNN . Retrieved January 11, 2012 .
^ "Presidential Primary Dates" (PDF) . Federal Election Commission . Retrieved January 23, 2012 .
^ "America's Choice 2012 Election Center: Results - Illinois" . CNN . Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved July 19, 2012 .
^ a b "2012 Illinois Green Primary" . February 24, 2012. Retrieved August 6, 2020 .
^ "2012 Illinois Green Primary results" . Archived from the original on November 16, 2012.{{cite web }}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link )
^ "Huffington Post Election Dashboard" . HuffPost . Archived from the original on August 13, 2013.
^ "America's Choice 2012 Election Center: CNN Electoral Map" . CNN . Archived from the original on January 19, 2013.
^ "Election 2012 - The Electoral Map: Building a Path to Victory" . The New York Times . Archived from the original on July 8, 2012.
^ "2012 Presidential Election Results" . The Washington Post . Archived from the original on July 26, 2012.
^ "RealClearPolitics - 2012 Election Maps - Battle for White House" . Archived from the original on June 8, 2011.
^ "PROJECTION: OBAMA WILL LIKELY WIN SECOND TERM" .
^ "Nate Silver's political calculations predict 2012 election outcome" .
^ "2012 Presidential General Election Data Graphs - Illinois" . uselectionatlas.org .
^ "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts" . Daily Kos . Retrieved August 11, 2020 .
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