The 2012 North Carolina lieutenant gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the other elections to the Council of State and the gubernatorial election. Primary elections were held May 8. The offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor are elected independently. The incumbent, Lt. Gov. Walter H. Dalton, announced on Jan. 26, 2012 that he would run for Governor.[1]
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 County results Forest: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Coleman: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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In the general election, Republican Dan Forest won 50.08% of the vote, narrowly defeating Democrat Linda Coleman.[2] The election result was in doubt for almost two weeks after Election Day, and was within the margin in which Coleman could ask for a recount, but she chose not to do so on Nov. 19.[3]
When he took office in January 2013, Forest became the state's first Republican lieutenant governor since Jim Gardner left office two decades earlier.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
- Linda Coleman, former state representative, state personnel director[4]
- Eric L. Mansfield, state senator[5]
Declined
- Cal Cunningham, former state senator[6]
- Hampton Dellinger, attorney[7]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Linda Coleman | Eric Mansfield | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | May 5–6, 2012 | 500 | ± 3.1% | 41% | 23% | 36% |
| Survey USA | April 26–30, 2012 | 560 | ± 4.2% | 41% | 23% | 36% |
| Public Policy Polling | April 27–29, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 39% | 18% | 43% |
| Public Policy Polling | April 20–22, 2012 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 28% | 16% | 56% |
| Public Policy Polling | March 23–25, 2012 | 505 | ± 4.36% | 26% | 14% | 59% |
| Public Policy Polling | February 29 – March 1, 2012 | 499 | ± 4.4% | 25% | 15% | 61% |
Results
- Coleman—71-80%
- Coleman—61-70%
- Coleman—51-60%
- Mansfield—71-80%
- Mansfield—61-70%
- Mansfield—51-60%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Linda Coleman | 483,905 | 56.1 | |
| Democratic | Eric Mansfield | 378,635 | 43.9 | |
| Total votes | 862,540 | 100.0 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Declared
- Dale Folwell, state representative, former Winston-Salem School Board member, accountant and investment advisor[9]
- Dan Forest, architect, son of Congresswoman Sue Myrick[10]
- Tony Gurley, Wake County Commissioner, pharmacist, ex-race car driver[11]
- Grey Mills, state representative[12]
- Arthur Rich, businessman[13]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Dale Folwell | Dan Forest | Tony Gurley | Grey Mills | Arthur Rich | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | May 5–6, 2012 | 496 | ± 4.4% | 22% | 17% | 18% | 9% | 2% | 32% |
| Survey USA | April 26–30, 2012 | 451 | ± 4.7% | 13% | 17% | 12% | 11% | 5% | 41% |
| Public Policy Polling | April 27–29, 2012 | 486 | ± 4.4% | 20% | 15% | 11% | 10% | 3% | 40% |
| Public Policy Polling | April 20–22, 2012 | 521 | ± 4.3% | 15% | 12% | 12% | 8% | 2% | 51% |
Results
- Forest—51-60%
- Forest—41-50%
- Forest—31-40%
- Forest—21-30%
- Gurley—51-60%
- Gurley—41-50%
- Gurley—31-40%
- Folwell—51-60%
- Folwell—41-50%
- Folwell—31-40%
- Folwell—21-30%
- Mills—41-50%
- Mills—31-40%
- Mills—21-30%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Dan Forest | 251,885 | 32.9 | |
| Republican | Tony Gurley | 189,954 | 24.9 | |
| Republican | Dale Folwell | 185,535 | 24.3 | |
| Republican | Grey Mills | 112,063 | 14.7 | |
| Republican | Arthur Jason Rich | 25,015 | 3.3 | |
| Total votes | 764,452 | 100.0 | ||
Under state law, if no candidate receives 40 percent of the vote in the primary, the second-place candidate can request a second primary (runoff).[15] According to unofficial May 8 primary election results, Gurley came in second, and he announced that he would request such a runoff.[16]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Dan Forest | 101,428 | 67.9 | |
| Republican | Tony Gurley | 47,978 | 32.1 | |
| Total votes | 149,406 | 100.0 | ||
General election
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Linda Coleman (D) | Dan Forest (R) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | November 3–4, 2012 | 926 | ± 3.2% | 44% | 45% | 11% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 29–31, 2012 | 730 | ± 3.6% | 41% | 43% | 16% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 12–14, 2012 | 1,084 | ± 3% | 37% | 38% | 26% |
| Civitas/National Research, Inc. | September 18–19, 2012 | 600 | ± 4% | 43% | 39% | 18% |
| Public Policy Polling | August 31 – September 1, 2012 | 1,012 | ± 3.1% | 41% | 39% | 20% |
| Public Policy Polling | August 2–5, 2012 | 813 | ± 3.4% | 37% | 38% | 26% |
| Public Policy Polling | May 10–13, 2012 | 666 | ± 3.8% | 41% | 40% | 20% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Dan Forest | 2,187,728 | 50.08% | |
| Democratic | Linda Coleman | 2,180,870 | 49.92% | |
| Total votes | 4,368,598 | 100.00% | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||