The 2006 Maine gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006, to elect the governor of Maine. Incumbent Democratic Governor John Baldacci won a second term, defeating Republican nominee Chandler Woodcock.
In the general election, Baldacci, Woodcock, Green Independent Party candidate Pat LaMarche, and independents Barbara Merrill and Phillip Morris Napier appeared on the ballot.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- John Baldacci, incumbent Governor of Maine
- Christopher Miller, internet service provider
Results
Republican primary
Candidates
- Dave Emery, former U.S. Representative
- Peter Mills, State Senator
- Chandler Woodcock, State Senator
Results
Green Independent Party
- Pat LaMarche, businesswoman, nominee for Governor in 1998 and nominee for Vice President of the United States in 2004
Independents
;Qualified for ballot
- Barbara Merrill, State Representative
- Phillip Morris Napier, 2002 candidate for Governor
;Withdrawn
- David Jones, real estate executive
- John Michael, former State Representative, 2002 candidate for Governor
|
| November 6, 2006
|-
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball
|
| November 6, 2006
|-
| align=left | Rothenberg Political Report
|
| November 2, 2006
|-
| align=left | Real Clear Politics
|
| November 6, 2006
|}
Polling
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|- bgcolor=lightgrey
! width=285px | Source
! width=140px | Date
! width=100px | John<br />Baldacci (D)
! width=100px | Chandler<br />Woodcock (R)
! width=100px | Pat<br />LaMarche (G)
! width=100px | Barbra<br />Merrill (I)
! width=100px | <br />NaPier (I)
|-
| align=left |WCSH/Voice of the Voter
| November 5, 2006
| |36%
| 30%
| 11%
| 22%
| 1%
|-
| align=left |Sun Journal
| October 2006
| |42%
| 25%
| 11%
| 11%
| –
|-
| align=left |Survey USA
| October 23, 2006
| |42%
| 34%
| 9%
| 12%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| October 19, 2006
| |46%
| 38%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| September 22, 2006
| |44%
| 39%
|-
| align=left |WCSH/Voice of the Voter
| September 14, 2006
| |42%
| 41%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| August 22, 2006
| |43%
| 42%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| August 2, 2006
| |43%
| 37%
|-
| align=left |Strategic Marketing Services
| August 1, 2006
| |42%
| 24%
|-
| align=left |Survey USA
| July 11, 2006
| 41%
| |43%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| June 22, 2006
| |45%
| 43%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| May 7, 2006
| |46%
| 33%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| April 7, 2006
| |43%
| 36%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| March 6, 2006
| |40%
| 35%
|-
| align=left |Rasmussen
| February 6, 2006
| 30%
| |36%
|-
|}
Results
Results by county
{| width="65%" class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="1" rowspan="2" |County
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| John Baldacci<br />Democratic
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Chandler Woodock<br />Republican
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Barbara Merrill<br />Independent
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Patricia LaMarche<br/>Green
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Others
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Margin
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="1"| Total votes cast
|-
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| %
! style="text-align:center;" data-sort-type="number"| #
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Androscoggin
| | 13,631
| | 33.3%
| | 13,362
| | 32.7%
| | 9,805
| | 24.0%
| | 3,914
| | 9.6%
| | 204
| | 0.5%
| | 269
| | 0.6%
| | 40,916
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Aroostook
| | 12,752
| | 48.4%
| | 7,188
| | 27.3%
| | 3,803
| | 14.4%
| | 2,404
| | 9.1%
| | 184
| | 0.7%
| | 5,564
| | 21.1%
| | 26,331
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Cumberland
| | 48,449
| | 39.8%
| | 31,835
| | 26.2%
| | 27,613
| | 22.7%
| | 13,082
| | 10.8%
| | 668
| | 0.5%
| | 16,614
| | 13.6%
| | 121,647
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Franklin
| | 4,613
| | 32.0%
| | 5,920
| | 41.1%
| | 2,521
| | 17.5%
| | 1,270
| | 8.8%
| | 97
| | 0.7%
| | -1,307
| | -9.1%
| | 14,421
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Hancock
| | 10,138
| | 40.3%
| | 7,231
| | 28.7%
| | 5,319
| | 21.1%
| | 2,307
| | 9.2%
| | 160
| | 0.6%
| | 2,907
| | 11.6%
| | 25,155
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Kennebec
| | 18,765
| | 36.5%
| | 16,178
| | 31.5%
| | 10,748
| | 20.9%
| | 5,482
| | 10.7%
| | 251
| | 0.5%
| | 2,587
| | 5.0%
| | 51,424
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Knox
| | 6,506
| | 35.1%
| | 5,019
| | 27.1%
| | 5,056
| | 27.3%
| | 1,808
| | 9.8%
| | 140
| | 0.8%
| | 1,450
| | 7.8%
| | 18,259
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Lincoln
| | 5,825
| | 33.0%
| | 5,494
| | 31.2%
| | 4,537
| | 25.7%
| | 1,679
| | 9.5%
| | 96
| | 0.5%
| | 1,450
| | 1.8%
| | 18,259
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Oxford
| | 8,281
| | 34.0%
| | 7,771
| | 31.9%
| | 6,122
| | 25.2%
| | 2,036
| | 8.4%
| | 127
| | 0.5%
| | 510
| | 2.1%
| | 24,337
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Penobscot
| | 24,015
| | 40.9%
| | 19,100
| | 32.5%
| | 10,643
| | 18.1%
| | 4,677
| | 8.0%
| | 320
| | 0.5%
| | 4,915
| | 8.4%
| | 58,755
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Piscataquis
| | 2,591
| | 34.5%
| | 2,829
| | 37.7%
| | 1,476
| | 19.7%
| | 559
| | 7.5%
| | 47
| | 0.6%
| | -238
| | -3.2%
| | 7,502
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Sagadahoc
| | 5,962
| | 35.1%
| | 4,829
| | 28.5%
| | 4,316
| | 25.4%
| | 1,775
| | 10.5%
| | 86
| | 0.5%
| | 1,133
| | 6.6%
| | 16,968
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Somerset
| | 6,500
| | 32.3%
| | 7,393
| | 36.7%
| | 4,025
| | 20.0%
| | 2,084
| | 10.3%
| | 139
| | 0.7%
| | -893
| | -4.4%
| | 20,141
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Waldo
| | 5,678
| | 33.5%
| | 5,329
| | 31.5%
| | 4,143
| | 24.5%
| | 1,680
| | 9.9%
| | 108
| | 0.6%
| | 349
| | 2.0%
| | 16,938
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | Washington
| | 3,897
| | 29.3%
| | 5,057
| | 38.1%
| | 3,002
| | 22.6%
| | 1,204
| | 9.1%
| | 119
| | 0.9%
| | -1,160
| | -8.8%
| | 13,279
|- style="text-align:center;"
| | York
| | 32,324
| | 42.0%
| | 21,890
| | 28.5%
| | 15,591
| | 20.3%
| | 6,729
| | 8.8%
| | 362
| | 0.5%
| | 10,434
| | 3.5%
| | 76,896
|- style="text-align:center;"
!Totals!!209,927!!38.1%!!166,425!!30.2%!!118,715!!21.6%!!52,690!!9.6%!!3,108!!0.6%!!43,502!!7.9%!!550,865
|}
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
- Cumberland (largest municipality: Portland)
- Knox (largest municipality: Rockland)
- Lincoln (Largest city: Waldoboro)
- Sagadahoc (largest town:Bath)
- York (largest town:Biddeford)
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Franklin (largest town: Farmington)
- Piscataquis (largest municipality: Dover-Foxcroft)
- Somerset (largest town: Skowhegan)
- Washington (largest city: Calais)
Analysis
Despite the divided field, Baldacci still finished nearly eight points ahead of his nearest challenger, Woodcock. Merrill took an impressive 21% of the vote, and carried the municipalities of Glenwood Plantation, Hope, Milton, Seboeis Plantation, Stow, The Forks, and Union. Additionally, the municipalities of Carroll Plantation, Dennysville, Wade, and Westmanland finished as exact ties between Baldacci and Woodcock, while the municipality of Highland Plantation finished as an exact tie between Baldacci and LaMarche, the municipality of Webster Plantation finished as an exact tie between Baldacci and Merrill, and the municipality of Nashville Plantation finished as an exact tie between Woodcock and Merrill.
Despite LaMarche getting nearly 10% of the vote and slightly improving on Jonathan Carter's vote percentage and vote total four years earlier, both of which were all-time highs for the Maine Green Independent Party, the 2006 election remains the most recent time the Greens ran a candidate for governor.
See also
- 2006 United States gubernatorial elections
- 2006 United States Senate election in Maine
References
External links
Official campaign websites (Archived)
- John Baldacci for Governor
- Chandler Woodcock for Governor
- Bruce Fleming for Governor
- Alex Hammer for Governor
- Barbara Merrill for Governor
- David Jones for Governor