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2006 Maryland gubernatorial election

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2006 Maryland gubernatorial election
← 2002 November 7, 2006 2010 →
Turnout57.53% Decrease 4.32%[1]
 
Nominee Martin O'Malley Bob Ehrlich
Party Democratic Republican
Running mate Anthony Brown Kristen Cox
Popular vote 942,279 825,464
Percentage 52.69% 46.16%
County results
O'Malley:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Ehrlich:      50–60%      60–70%
Governor before election

Bob Ehrlich
Republican

Elected Governor

Martin O'Malley
Democratic

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The 2006 Maryland gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican governor Bob Ehrlich ran for a second term, but was defeated by the Democratic nominee, Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley. Ehrlich was the only incumbent governor from either party to lose a general election in the 2006 midterms.

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Campaign

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Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley and Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan emerged as the two Democratic candidates for governor in late 2005. Early polling indicated that O'Malley would have the advantage in both the Democratic primary and the general election, with a solid lead over Duncan in the primary and a several point lead over Ehrlich in the general.[2]

As the gubernatorial campaign intensified, Duncan withdrew from the race, citing his diagnosis with clinical depression. In the same announcement, he threw his support behind O'Malley and declined to seek another office in the fall. No other Democratic candidate had announced, so O'Malley was unopposed in the primary election.

O'Malley selected Anthony Brown, a black State Delegate from Prince George's County and a veteran of the Iraq War, as his running mate.

Results

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Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Martin O'Malley 524,671 100.00%
Total votes 524,671 100.00%

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Campaign

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Ehrlich sought a second term as governor and did not face opposition at any point in the Republican primary. Incumbent lieutenant governor Michael Steele ran for the U.S. Senate instead of seeking a second term as lieutenant governor, so Ehrlich named Maryland Secretary of Disabilities Kristen Cox, who is blind, as his running mate.

Results

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Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bob Ehrlich (incumbent) 213,744 100.00%
Total votes 213,744 100.00%

General election

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Candidates

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Campaign

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Elected to his first term in 2002, incumbent Republican governor Bob Ehrlich ran for a second term as governor, opposed by the Democratic nominee, Martin O'Malley, the mayor of Baltimore. Both candidates emerged from uncontested primary elections and a contentious election season began.

Early in the campaign, Ehrlich boasted decent approval ratings from Maryland citizens, with a Gonzalez Research poll taken during October 2005 showing him with a 49% approval rating.[2] and a Baltimore Sun poll from November 2005 giving the Governor a 50% approval and a 33% disapproval.[4] However, the unpopularity of the national Republican Party and President George W. Bush dragged Ehrlich's re-election chances down.[5][6]

Ehrlich launched attack ads that hit O'Malley on crime in Baltimore under his tenure as Mayor, calling the murder rate in Baltimore "awful" and "an embarrassment to the state of Maryland."[7] O'Malley countered with one television ad that featured testimonials from local community leaders, Howard County Executive James N. Robey, Baltimore County Executive James T. Smith Jr.[8] and another ad that attacked Ehrlich for breaking his promise to end parole for violent criminals.[9]

The Washington Post and The Washington Times both endorsed Ehrlich in his bid for re-election, with the Times praising Ehrlich's "brand of moderate conservatism that offers a refreshing contrast" to the state's historically Democratic leanings[10] and the Post called him "a generally proficient, pragmatic governor" and praised him for "successes on transportation, the environment and education."[11]

In turn, The Baltimore Sun endorsed O'Malley, saying, "the progress under the mayor's tenure is clear and irrefutable", and that he addressed "rising crime, failing schools and shrinking economic prospects."[12] O'Malley also called upon the praise given to him by TIME Magazine when they named him one of the country's "Top 5 Big City Mayors."[13]

Predictions

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Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[14] Tossup November 6, 2006
Sabato's Crystal Ball[15] Lean D (flip) November 6, 2006
Rothenberg Political Report[16] Lean D (flip) November 2, 2006
Real Clear Politics[17] Tossup November 6, 2006

Polling

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Source Date Martin
O'Malley (D) 		Bob
Ehrlich (R)
SurveyUSA[18] November 5, 2006 50% 47%
Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[19] November 1, 2006 47% 46%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[20] October 31, 2006 49.3% 43.9%
Public Opinion Strategies[21] October 31, 2006 46% 45%
Rasmussen[22] October 30, 2006 50% 47%
Washington Post[23] October 29, 2006 55% 45%
Rasmussen[24] October 17, 2006 53% 45%
USA TODAY/Gallup[25] October 6, 2006 53% 41%
Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[26] September 24, 2006 50% 44%
Survey USA[27] September 20, 2006 51% 44%
Rasmussen[28] September 20, 2006 49% 42%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[20] September 11, 2006 52.5% 39.6%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[20] August 28, 2006 52.0% 42.2%
Rasmussen[29] August 18, 2006 50% 43%
[30] August 14, 2006 41% 41%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[20] July 24, 2006 51.3% 42.2%
Rasmussen[31] July 17, 2006 49% 42%
Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[32] July 16, 2006 46% 38%
The Washington Post[33] June 25, 2006 51% 40%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[20] June 21, 2006 53.1% 39.2%
Opinion Works[34] April 27, 2006 46% 37%
Rasmussen[35] April 21, 2006 51% 42%
Gonzales Research[36] April 18, 2006 46% 41%
Rasmussen[37] January 13, 2006 42% 47%
Wall Street Journal/Zogby[38] January 13, 2006 53% 40%
Rasmussen[39] November 22, 2005 46% 40%
Baltimore Sun[40] November 6, 2005 48% 33%
Baltimore Sun[41] October 25, 2005 48% 42%
Rasmussen[42] July 18, 2005 41% 46%
Baltimore Sun[43] April 17, 2005 45% 39%
Baltimore Sun[43] January 2005 40% 40%

Results

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Maryland gubernatorial election, 2006[44]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Martin O'Malley 942,279 52.69% +5.02%
Republican Bob Ehrlich (incumbent) 825,464 46.16% −5.39%
Green Ed Boyd 15,551 0.87% N/A
Populist Christopher Driscoll 3,481 0.19% N/A
Write-in 1,541 0.09% N/A
Total votes 1,788,316 100.00% N/A
Democratic gain from Republican

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

References

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  1. ^ "2006 Gubernatorial General Election - County-Wide Turnout". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Democrat support plunges for Ehrlich". The Washington Times.
  3. ^ a b "Official 2006 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Governor / Lt. Governor". elections.maryland.gov.
  4. ^ Nitkin, By Andrew A. Green and David (November 6, 2005). "An early edge for Ehrlich's rivals". baltimoresun.com.
  5. ^ Lauren Dezenski; Kevin Robillard (February 1, 2017). "Trump makes blue-state Republicans squirm". Politico. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  6. ^ Matthew Mosk; John Wagner (November 8, 2006). "Cardin, O'Malley Win in Statewide Democratic Wave". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 16, 2024. Although both contests remained competitive, the general anti-Republican mood pervading the nation began to weigh on Ehrlich and Steele, who tried to tap national GOP connections for money while trying to avoid an affiliation with Washington as the climate worsened for their party.
  7. ^ Wagner, John (September 30, 2006). "Ehrlich Ads Hammer O'Malley on Crime". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  8. ^ "Martin O'Malley 2005 TV Ad: The Real Record in Baltimore". August 12, 2008. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021 – via www.youtube.com.
  9. ^ "Martin O'Malley 2005 TV Ad: The Real Question". August 12, 2008. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021 – via www.youtube.com.
  10. ^ "Ehrlich for governor, Steele for Senate". The Washington Times.
  11. ^ "For Governor in Maryland". washingtonpost.com. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on February 14, 2007.
  12. ^ "O'Malley for governor". The Baltimore Sun. October 29, 2006. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014.
  13. ^ Thompson, Mark (April 25, 2005). "Wonk 'n' Roller". time.com. Archived from the original on May 16, 2006.
  14. ^ "2006 Governor Race Ratings for November 6, 2006" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 5, 2008. Retrieved October 1, 2006.
  15. ^ "Election Eve 2006: THE FINAL PREDICTIONS". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  16. ^ "2006 Gubernatorial Ratings". Senate Ratings. The Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  17. ^ "Election 2006". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  18. ^ "404 Not Found | wusa9.com". www.wusa9.com. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  19. ^ "Governor race a tossup - baltimoresun.com". January 2, 2007. Archived from the original on January 2, 2007.
  20. ^ a b c d e "WSJ.com". www.wsj.com.
  21. ^ Public Opinion Strategies
  22. ^ "Election Polls 2006: Maryland Governor". Archived from the original on March 11, 2007.
  23. ^ Washington Post
  24. ^ Rasmussen
  25. ^ "USA TODAY/Gallup". USA Today.
  26. ^ Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.
  27. ^ "Results of SurveyUSA Election Poll #10281". www.surveyusa.com.
  28. ^ Rasmussen
  29. ^ Rasmussen
  30. ^ "2006 Maryland Senate Race | RealClearPolling". www.realclearpolling.com.
  31. ^ Rasmussen
  32. ^ "Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc". Archived from the original on March 11, 2007.
  33. ^ The Washington Post
  34. ^ "Opinion Works". Archived from the original on September 21, 2006.
  35. ^ Rasmussen
  36. ^ "Gonzales Research". Archived from the original on April 20, 2006.
  37. ^ Rasmussen
  38. ^ "Wall Street Journal/Zogby".
  39. ^ "Rasmussen". Archived from the original on November 25, 2005.
  40. ^ "Baltimore Sun".
  41. ^ "Baltimore Sun".
  42. ^ "Rasmussen". Archived from the original on October 31, 2005.
  43. ^ a b "Baltimore Sun".
  44. ^ "Official 2006 Gubernatorial General Election results for Governor / Lt. Governor". elections.maryland.gov.
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