Connecticut Republican primary, 2008
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Connecticut Republican Presidential Primary was held on February 5, 2008 (Super Tuesday
) as the process by which the U.S. state of Connecticut
selected the recipient of 27 of the state’s 30 delegates to the Republican National Convention
in the process to elect the Republican
candidate for the 44th President of the United States
. It was a closed primary, restricted to enrolled members of the Republican Party.
By law, "uncommitted" appeared below the list of candidates on the ballots for both parties in Connecticut.
Candidates who withdrew from the race remained on the ballot in Connecticut if they had withdrawn after December 27, 2007. The only withdrawn Republican candidate who had been placed on the list of likely candidates in November who withdrew early enough to not appear on the Republican presidential ballot was Colorado
Congressman Tom Tancredo
. California
Congressman Duncan Hunter, former Tennessee
Senator Fred Thompson, and former New York City
Mayor Rudy Giuliani withdrew after the December 27 cut-off date, thus they remained on the ballot.
in 1984 and George W. Bush
in 2004. With John McCain having won the 2008 Republican nomination, Connecticut selected the eventual Republican nominee 67 percent of the time.
The February 5 primary was the first time Connecticut used the optical scan voting system
for a primary. The state had first used the technology statewide in the 2007 municipal elections.
* Candidate dropped out of the race before the primary
Super Tuesday, 2008
Super Tuesday 2008, Super Duper Tuesday, Mega Tuesday, Giga Tuesday, Tsunami Tuesday, and The Tuesday of Destiny are names for February 5, 2008, the day on which the largest simultaneous number of state U.S. presidential primary elections in the history of U.S. primaries were held...
) as the process by which the U.S. state of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
selected the recipient of 27 of the state’s 30 delegates to the Republican National Convention
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
in the process to elect the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
candidate for the 44th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. It was a closed primary, restricted to enrolled members of the Republican Party.
Candidates
The following is the order in which Republican candidates appeared on Connecticut’s Republican primary ballot on February 5, 2008:- Rudolph Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Mitt RomneyMitt RomneyWillard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
, John McCainJohn McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
, Duncan HunterDuncan HunterDuncan Lee Hunter is an American politician. He was a Republican member of the House of Representatives from California's 52nd, 45th and 42nd districts from 1981 to 2009....
, Ron PaulRon PaulRonald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
, Mike HuckabeeMike HuckabeeMichael "Mike" Dale Huckabee is an American politician who served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate in the 2008 United States Republican presidential primaries, finishing second in delegate count and third in both popular vote and number of states won . He won...
, and Alan KeyesAlan KeyesAlan Lee Keyes is an American conservative political activist, author, former diplomat, and perennial candidate for public office. A doctoral graduate of Harvard University, Keyes began his diplomatic career in the U.S...
.
By law, "uncommitted" appeared below the list of candidates on the ballots for both parties in Connecticut.
Candidates who withdrew from the race remained on the ballot in Connecticut if they had withdrawn after December 27, 2007. The only withdrawn Republican candidate who had been placed on the list of likely candidates in November who withdrew early enough to not appear on the Republican presidential ballot was Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
Congressman Tom Tancredo
Tom Tancredo
Thomas Gerard "Tom" Tancredo is an American politician from Colorado, who represented the state's sixth congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2009, as a Republican...
. California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Congressman Duncan Hunter, former Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
Senator Fred Thompson, and former New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Mayor Rudy Giuliani withdrew after the December 27 cut-off date, thus they remained on the ballot.
History
Although the February 5, 2008 primary was be the eighth presidential cycle since Connecticut replaced local primaries with a statewide primary in 1977, it was only the sixth primary to feature Republican candidates due to the unchallenged incumbents of Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
in 1984 and George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in 2004. With John McCain having won the 2008 Republican nomination, Connecticut selected the eventual Republican nominee 67 percent of the time.
The February 5 primary was the first time Connecticut used the optical scan voting system
Optical scan voting system
An optical scan voting system is an electronic voting system and uses an optical scanner to read marked paper ballots and tally the results.-History:...
for a primary. The state had first used the technology statewide in the 2007 municipal elections.
Opinion polling
Results
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Delegates |
|---|---|---|---|
| John McCain John McCain presidential campaign, 2008 John McCain, the senior United States Senator from Arizona, launched his second candidacy for the presidency of the United States in an unsuccessful bid to win the 2008 presidential election. His candidacy, in the works for a number of years, was informally announced on February 28, 2007 during a... |
78,836 | 52.00% | 27 |
| Mitt Romney Mitt Romney presidential campaign, 2008 Mitt Romney was a Republican Party primary candidate in the 2008 United States presidential election. On January 3, 2007, two days before he stepped down as governor of Massachusetts, Romney filed to form a presidential exploratory committee with the Federal Election Commission... |
49,891 | 32.91% | 0 |
| Mike Huckabee Mike Huckabee presidential campaign, 2008 Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas, announced his candidacy for the Republican Party nomination for the 2008 presidential election in the United States on January 28, 2007... |
10,607 | 7.00% | 0 |
| Ron Paul Ron Paul presidential campaign, 2008 Ron Paul was a Republican Party primary candidate in the 2008 United States presidential election.Initial opinion polls during the first three quarters of 2007 showed Ron Paul consistently receiving support from 3% or less of those polled... |
6,287 | 4.15% | 0 |
| Rudy Giuliani Rudy Giuliani presidential campaign, 2008 Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 presidential campaign began following the formation of the Draft Giuliani movement in October 2005. The next year, Giuliani opened an exploratory committee and formally announced in February 2007 that he was actively seeking the presidential nomination of the Republican... * |
2,470 | 1.63% | 0 |
| Uncommitted | 2,462 | 1.62% | 0 |
| Fred Thompson Fred Thompson presidential campaign, 2008 Fred Thompson was a Republican Party primary candidate to represent his party in the 2008 United States presidential election. Thompson has worked as a lawyer, lobbyist, and character actor, and he represented Tennessee as a Republican in the U.S... * |
538 | 0.35% | 0 |
| Alan Keyes Alan Keyes presidential campaign, 2008 Alan Keyes announced his United States Presidential candidacy, running as a Republican Party candidate, on September 14, 2007 in an interview with radio show personality Janet Parshall... |
376 | 0.25% | 0 |
| Duncan Hunter Duncan Hunter presidential campaign, 2008 Fourteen-term Congressman and Vietnam War veteran Duncan Hunter of California announced his intentions to run for the 2008 Republican nomination for President of the United States in January 2007. He focused his campaign on the issues of border security, trade, and the war on terrorism... * |
137 | 0.09% | 0 |
| Total | 151,604 | 100% | 27 |
See also
- Connecticut Democratic primary, 2008Connecticut Democratic primary, 2008The Connecticut Democratic Presidential Primary took place on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008, with 48 delegates at stake. The winner in each of Connecticut's five congressional districts was awarded all of that district's delegates, totaling 31. Another 17 delegates were awarded to the statewide...
- Republican Party (United States) presidential primaries, 2008Republican Party (United States) presidential primaries, 2008The 2008 Republican presidential primaries were the selection process by which voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for President of the United States in the 2008 U.S. presidential election...