- Oregon gubernatorial election, 2006
-
Oregon gubernatorial election, 2006 
2002 ← November 7, 2006 → 2010 
Nominee Ted Kulongoski Ron Saxton Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 698,562 588,155 Percentage 50.8 42.7
Governor before election
Elected Governor
The 2006 gubernatorial election in the U.S. state of Oregon took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Ted Kulongoski defeated Republican Ron Saxton, winning his bid for a second term as Governor of Oregon.
The race featured hotly-contested primary elections for both the Republican and Democratic parties, a strong but short-lived run by State Senator Ben Westlund (as an independent), and controversy over the legitimacy of Constitution Party candidate Mary Starrett.
Contents
Primary elections
Both the Democratic and Republican primary elections were actively contested.
On the Democratic side, numerous challengers considered running to succeed one-term incumbent Ted Kulongoski. Former Governor John Kitzhaber was discussed widely as a potential challenger, but ultimately declined to run. State Senator Vicki Walker, known for standing up to powerful utilities, also considered a run.[1] Former Treasurer and legislator Jim Hill and former state Senator and Lane County Commissioner Pete Sorenson ended up running against Kulongoski in the May primary election, which Kulongoski won.
A wide field of Republicans emerged to challenge Kulongoski. 2004 nominee, and party chairman Kevin Mannix was an early favorite. It was widely believed that a highly conservative candidate like Mannix (who has based much of his career on strong advocacy of victims' rights and other conservative social issues) faced an uphill battle in a left-leaning state. State Senator Jason Atkinson won strong support as a relative newcomer, but ultimately 2004 contender Ron Saxton - who had been widely regarded in 2004 as the most moderate Republican contender - emerged with the nomination.
State Senator Ben Westlund, formerly a Republican, dropped his party affiliation to run as an independent candidate. He built a strong campaign, likely gathering enough signatures to qualify for the General Election, but ultimately declined to do so (citing his desire not to run as a "spoiler".)
Three minor parties - Constitution, Green, and Libertarian - also nominated candidates for the November election.
The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, who opposed a Columbia Gorge casino, spent over $800,000 in the Democratic and Republican primary races, opposing Kulongoski and Mannix.[2]
Polling
Democratic primary
Poll Source Date Administered Ted Kulongoski Jim Hill Pete Sorenson Oregonian May 16, 2006 54.37% 29.37% 16.27% Republican primary
Poll Source Date Administered Ron Saxton Kevin Mannix Jason Atkinson Oregonian May 16, 2006 42.17% 30.05% 22.56% General Election Candidates
- Democratic Party
- Ted Kulongoski - Incumbent Governor [3]
- Republican Party
- Ron Saxton - Ex-Portland Public School Board Member, Attorney, and 2002 Gubernatorial Candidate [4]
- Constitution Party
- Mary Starrett - Ex radio & talk show host.
- Pacific Green Party
- Joe Keating - Ex director of the Oregon Wildlife Federation, chair of the Oregon Sierra Club from 1999 to 2000
- Libertarian Party
- Richard Morley
Election results
Results by county:
KulongoskiSaxtonOregon gubernatorial election, 2006 Party Candidate Votes Percentage Democratic Ted Kulongoski (incumbent) 698,562 50.8% Republican Ron Saxton 588,155 42.7% Constitution (Oregon) Mary Starrett 50,103 3.6% Green Joe Keating 19,978 1.5% Libertarian Richard Morley 16,751 1.2% write-ins 2,447 0.2% Totals 1,375,995 % Democratic hold Outlook and opinion polling
Democratic Governor Ted Kulongoski won a three-candidate primary with 54%, and faced a tough general election against moderate former Portland School Board member Ron Saxton. As of September 21, 2006, Kulongoski's approval rating was 36% according to a poll done by SurveyUSA.[5]
The plus side for Kulongoski is that former moderate Republican-turned-Independent candidate Ben Westlund withdrew from the race for governor on August 10, 2006, explaining that he did not want to be a spoiler [6]; and that Constitution Party candidate Mary Starrett was expected to take votes primarily away from Republican nominee Saxton. CQPolitics quoted Oregon State University political science professor Bill Lunch as explaining: "I think we’re ... likely to see 5-to-6 or 7-to-8 percent from Starrett. Even so, those numbers come right out of Saxton’s hide." [7]
Poll Source Date Administered Kulongoski (D) Saxton (R) Starrett (C) Morley (L) Keating (G) KATU/Oregonian October 31, 2006 45% 38% 6% 1% 1% Rasmussen October 31, 2006 51% 44% — — — Riley Research October 25, 2006 47% 36% 4% 1% 1% Riley Research October 3, 2006 37% 39% 2% 1% 1% Rasmussen October 1, 2006 47% 42% — — — Rasmussen September 25, 2006 47% 38% — — — Zogby Interactive Poll September 11, 2006 47.0% 39.8% 4.5% 1.2% — Zogby Interactive Poll August 28, 2006 49.9% 43.5% — — — Rasmussen August 22, 2006 49% 35% — — — Rasmussen August 3, 2006 45% 35% — — — Zogby Interactive Poll July 24, 2006 49.0% 42.2% — — — Zogby Interactive Poll June 21, 2006 47.6% 40.1% — — — Rasmussen May 23, 2006 43% 41% — — — Zogby Interactive Poll March 22-27, 2006 46% 38.8% — — — Rasmussen February 27, 2006 47% 33% — — — References
- ^ Steves, David (December 1, 2005). "Walker puts decision on hold". The Register-Guard. http://www.registerguard.com/news/2005/12/01/d1.cr.walker.1201.p1.php?section=cityregion. Retrieved 2007-02-26.[dead link]
- ^ Jaquiss, Nigel (May 17, 2006). "Betting On The Governor's Race". Willamette Week. http://wweek.com/editorial/3228/7556/.
- ^ Fogarty, Colin (November 22, 2005). "Kulongoski In For 2006 Race, Shakes Up Staff". http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/opb/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=846172. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
- ^ http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8923RAO0.html
- ^ SurveyUSA - 50 State Governor 09/21 Sort By State
- ^ "Ben Westlund Withdraws From Oregon Governor's Race". August 10, 2006. http://www.salem-news.com/articles/august102006/westlund_81006.php.
- ^ Jesse Stanchak (August 29, 2006). "Opposite Outcomes for Outsiders a Boon for Oregon’s Kulongoski". CQPolitics.com. http://www.cqpolitics.com/2006/08/opposite_outcomes_for_outsider.html.
External links
- Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division
- Oregonian Voter Guide
- Joe Keating for Governor
- Ted Kulongoski for Governor
- Rox Saxton for Governor
- Mary Starrett for Governor
See also
- Oregon statewide elections, 2006
- United States gubernatorial elections, 2006
- List of Oregon Governors
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- Oregon elections, 2006
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