2006 Maine gubernatorial election

2006 Maine gubernatorial election

←  2002 November 7, 2006 2010  →

Nominee John Baldacci Chandler Woodcock Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 209,927 166,425 Percentage 38.11% 30.21%   Nominee Barbara Merrill Pat LaMarche Party Independent Green Popular vote 118,715 52,690 Percentage 21.55% 9.56%

County results Municipality results Baldacci:     20–30%     30–40%     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90% Woodcock:     20–30%     30–40%     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Merrill:     30–40%     40–50%     >90% LaMarche:     30–40% Tie:     20–30%     30–40%

Governor before election John Baldacci Democratic Elected Governor John Baldacci Democratic

The 2006 Maine gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006, to elect the governor of Maine. Incumbent Democratic governor John Baldacci won re-election to 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

Democratic primary results ^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Baldacci (incumbent)	40,314	75.81
	Democratic	Christopher Miller	12,861	24.19
Total votes			53,175	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Dave Emery, former U.S. Representative
• Peter Mills, State Senator
• Chandler Woodcock, State Senator

Results

Republican primary results ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Chandler Woodcock	27,025	38.58
	Republican	Peter Mills	24,631	35.17
	Republican	Dave Emery	18,388	26.25
Total votes			70,044	100.00

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Withdrawn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 ^[3]
• John Michael, former State Representative, 2002 candidate for Governor ^[3]

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report [4]	Lean D	November 6, 2006
Sabato's Crystal Ball [5]	Lean D	November 6, 2006
Rothenberg Political Report [6]	Likely D	November 2, 2006
Real Clear Politics [7]	Lean D	November 6, 2006

Polling

Source	Date	John Baldacci (D)	Chandler Woodcock (R)	Pat LaMarche (G)	Barbra Merrill (I)	Phillip Morris NaPier (I)
WCSH/Voice of the Voter [8]	November 5, 2006	36%	30%	11%	22%	1%
Sun Journal [9]	October 2006	42%	25%	11%	11%	–
Survey USA [10]	October 23, 2006	42%	34%	9%	12%
Rasmussen [11]	October 19, 2006	46%	38%
Rasmussen [12]	September 22, 2006	44%	39%
WCSH/Voice of the Voter [13]	September 14, 2006	42%	41%
Rasmussen [14]	August 22, 2006	43%	42%
Rasmussen [15]	August 2, 2006	43%	37%
Strategic Marketing Services [16]	August 1, 2006	42%	24%
Survey USA [17]	July 11, 2006	41%	43%
Rasmussen [18]	June 22, 2006	45%	43%
Rasmussen [19]	May 7, 2006	46%	33%
Rasmussen [20]	April 7, 2006	43%	36%
Rasmussen [21]	March 6, 2006	40%	35%
Rasmussen [22]	February 6, 2006	30%	36%

Results

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.

Maine gubernatorial election, 2006 ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	John Baldacci (incumbent)	209,927	38.11%	−9.04%
	Republican	Chandler Woodcock	166,425	30.21%	−11.26%
	Independent	Barbara Merrill	118,715	21.55%
	Green	Pat LaMarche	52,690	9.56%	+0.28%
	Independent	Phillip Morris Napier	3,108	0.56%
Plurality			43,502	7.90%	+2.22%
Turnout			550,865
	Democratic hold		Swing

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)

See also

• 2006 United States gubernatorial elections
• 2006 United States Senate election in Maine

References

1. "Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, Elections Division". Archived from the original on August 29, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
2. "Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, Elections Division". Archived from the original on August 29, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "Independents Michael, Jones, out of gubernatorial race". Foster's Daily Democrat. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
4. "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.
5. "Election Eve 2006: THE FINAL PREDICTIONS". Sabato's Crystal Ball. November 6, 2006. Archived from the original on May 5, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
6. "2006 Gubernatorial Ratings". Senate Ratings. The Rothenberg Political Report. Archived from the original on June 26, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
7. "Election 2006". Real Clear Politics. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
8. WSCH/Voice of the Voter ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
9. Sun Journal
10. Survey USA
11. Rasmussen
12. Rasmussen
13. WCSH/Voice of the Voter ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
14. Rasmussen
15. Rasmussen Archived 2006-10-21 at the Wayback Machine
16. Strategic Marketing Services ^{[ usurped ]}
17. Survey USA
18. Rasmussen
19. Rasmussen
20. Rasmussen Archived 2006-04-09 at the Wayback Machine
21. Rasmussen
22. Rasmussen
23. "Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, Elections Division". Archived from the original on January 27, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2011.

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