2012 United States Senate election in Virginia
The 2012 United States Senate election in Virginia took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the 2012 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 Democratic U.S. Senator Jim Webb retired instead of running for reelection to a second term, and former Democratic Governor of Virginia Tim Kaine won the open seat over Republican former Senator and Governor George Allen. Kaine was unopposed for the Democratic nomination, and the Republicans nominated Allen through a primary on June 12, 2012. Allen had previously held this seat for one term before narrowly losing reelection to Webb in 2006.
Republican primary
In Virginia, parties have the option of whether to hold a primary or to nominate their candidate through a party convention. In November 2010, the Virginia GOP announced that it had chosen to hold a primary.Candidates
Declared
- George Allen, former U.S. Senator and former Governor of Virginia
- E. W. Jackson, minister and conservative activist
- Bob Marshall, State Delegate
- Jamie Radtke, conservative activist
Withdrawn
- Tim Donner, founder of Horizons Television and LibertyNation.com
- David McCormick, attorney
Declined
- Liz Cheney, former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs
- Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia Attorney General
- Tom Davis, former U.S. Representative
- Corey Stewart, Prince William County Board of Supervisors Chairman
Debates
Polling
| Poll source | George Allen | E. W. Jackson | Bob Marshall | David McCormick | Jamie Radtke | Undecided | |||
| July 21–24, 2011 | 400 | ±4.9% | 68% | 2% | 2% | 0% | 6% | 22% | |
| 350 | ±5.2% | 67% | 2% | 3% | 2% | 5% | 21% | ||
| April 26–29, 2012 | 400 | ±4.9% | 66% | 2% | 8% | — | 3% | 20% | |
| 1,101 | ±3.5% | 62% | 3% | 12% | — | 5% | 18% |
Endorsements
Results
General election
Candidates
- George Allen, former U.S. Senator and former Governor of Virginia
- Tim Kaine, former Governor of Virginia and former Democratic National Committee chairman
Debates
David Gregory moderated a debate between Kaine and Allen on September 20, 2012. Topics included partisan gridlock in Washington policy making, job creation, tax policy, and Middle East unrest.;External links
- , September 20, 2012 - C-SPAN
- , October 8, 2012 - C-SPAN
- , October 18, 2012 - C-SPAN
Campaign
Fundraising
Top contributors
| Tim Kaine | Contribution | George Allen | Contribution | Kevin Chisholm | Contribution |
| League of Conservation Voters | $76,568 | McGuireWoods LLP | $76,950 | Valu Net | $2,475 |
| Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld | $51,650 | Altria Group | $64,749 | Geolq Inc | $1,500 |
| University of Virginia | $42,075 | Alpha Natural Resources | $38,000 | - | - |
| McGuireWoods LLP | $38,550 | Elliott Management Corporation | $35,913 | - | - |
| Covington & Burling | $36,700 | Koch Industries | $35,000 | - | - |
| DLA Piper | $31,750 | Lorillard Tobacco Company | $34,715 | - | - |
| Bain Capital | $30,000 | Alliance Resource Partners | $33,500 | - | - |
| Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom | $28,250 | Dominion Resources | $31,800 | - | - |
| Patton Boggs LLP | $26,750 | Norfolk Southern | $31,550 | - | - |
| Norfolk Southern | $26,000 | Boeing | $23,750 | - | - |
Top industries
| Tim Kaine | Contribution | George Allen | Contribution | Kevin Chisholm | Contribution | Terrence Modglin | Contribution |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $1,297,792 | Retired | $709,693 | Misc Energy | $250 | Lawyers/Law Firms | $200 |
| Retired | $762,722 | Real Estate | $384,038 | - | - | - | - |
| Financial Institutions | $477,700 | Lawyers/Law Firms | $348,459 | - | - | - | - |
| Business Services | $373,900 | Financial Institutions | $299,115 | - | - | - | - |
| Real Estate | $372,829 | Leadership PACs | $277,000 | - | - | - | - |
| Lobbyists | $287,545 | Lobbyists | $275,600 | - | - | - | - |
| Education | $282,475 | Mining | $197,206 | - | - | - | - |
| Misc Finance | $218,600 | Oil & Gas | $196,400 | - | - | - | - |
| Leadership PACs | $201,500 | Insurance | $159,065 | - | - | - | - |
| Entertainment industry | $156,279 | Misc Finance | $157,963 | - | - | - | - |