California gubernatorial election, 2006
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The 2006 California gubernatorial election occurred on November 7 2006. The primary elections took place on June 6 2006. The incumbent Republican Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, won reelection for his first full term. His main opponent was California State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the California Democratic Party nominee. Peter Camejo was the California Green Party nominee, Janice Jordan was the Peace and Freedom Party nominee, Art Olivier was the California Libertarian Party nominee, and Edward C. Noonan was the California American Independent Party nominee.
Under the California Constitution, the Governor serves a four-year term, with a maximum limit of two consecutive terms. Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected during the 2003 California recall and served out the remainder of Gray Davis's term; he is eligible to serve until 2011. [1]
Schwarzenegger's decision to call the 2005 special election, as well as his propositions dealing with teachers' and nurses' unions and other political missteps, brought his approval rating down to 39% April 2006 [2], though in recent opinion polls as of October 2006 he has been leading over his Democratic competitor by ten points or more. During his time in office, Schwarzenegger has come under fire from some conservatives for supporting several taxes on Californians[citation needed] and from some liberals for refusing to sign a bill allowing gay marriage. Later, Schwarzenegger's aggressive push for environment-friendly legislation, his support for stem cell research, gay rights, and opposition to sending the National Guard to the border, made him very popular among the voters, securing his reelection by a wide margine.
Governor Schwarzenegger faced token opposition in the primary and won the Republican nomination. The two front-runners for the Democratic nomination were Angelides and California State Controller Steve Westly (see below). Angelides has reported a recent increase in support for his campaign and has gained union support and support from the core liberal constituency, which were factors that led him to victory in the primary, defeating Westly 48% to 44%. The turnout, however, was a record low 33.6% [3], far below the 38% predicted by the Secretary of State [4], with the turnout of valid ballots cast on election day at 28%.
Contents |
[edit] Candidates
[edit] General Election
- Phil Angelides (Democratic)- California State Treasurer, Ex-State Democratic Chair & Developer
- Peter Camejo (Green) - 2002/2003 Green Party gubernatorial candidate, 2004 independent vice presidential candidate (Ralph Nader's running mate)
- Janice Jordan (Peace and Freedom) - 2004 Peace and Freedom Party vice presidential candidate (Leonard Peltier's running mate)
- Edward Noonan (American Independent) - Computer Shop Owner
- Art Olivier (Libertarian) - former mayor of Bellflower, 2000 Libertarian Party vice presidential candidate (Harry Browne's running mate)
- Arnold Schwarzenegger (Republican) - Incumbent Governor of California, Actor, Businessman
[edit] Write-in
California requires write-in candidates to file a statement of intent with the Secretary of State. These candidates have filed[5]:
- Donald "Dr. Don" Etkes (Independent) - Sex therapist
- Vibert Greene (Independent) - Mechanical engineer
- James Harris (Independent) - Communist political organizer
- Robert C. Newman II (Republican) - Psychologist
- Elisha Shapiro (Independent) - Nihilist
- DeAlphria Christina Tarver (Independent)
[edit] Primary Election
[edit] Democrats
- Phil Angelides - California State Treasurer, Ex-State Democratic Chair & Developer
- Barbara Becnel - Executive Director, Neighborhood House of North Richmond and Founder, Save Stanley Tookie Williams campaign
- Joe Brouilette - High School Teacher
- Edie Bukewihge - Homemaker, Publisher & Frequent Candidate
- Jerald Gerst - Physician
- Vibert Greene - Engineer
- Frank Macaluso - Medical Doctor
- Michael Strimling - Attorney
- Steve Westly - California State Controller & Ex-Internet Executive
[edit] Republicans
- Jeffrey Burns - General Contractor
- Bill Chambers - Railroad Switchman
- Robert C. Newman II - Psychologist & Farmer
- Arnold Schwarzenegger - Actor, Businessman and Incumbent Governor of California
[edit] Libertarian
- Art Olivier (Libertarian) - former mayor of Bellflower, 2000 Libertarian Party vice presidential candidate (Harry Browne's running mate)
[edit] Green
- Peter Camejo (Green) - 2002/2003 Green Party gubernatorial candidate, 2004 independent vice presidential candidate (Ralph Nader's running mate)
- George Fellows (Independent) - California State Budget Analyst
[edit] Peace & Freedom
- Janice Jordan (Peace and Freedom) - 2004 Peace and Freedom Party vice presidential candidate (Leonard Peltier's running mate)
[edit] American Independent
- Edward C. Noonan (American Independent) - Computer Shop Owner
[edit] Primary Election
Republican Schwarzenegger faced token opposition and won overwhelmingly in the Primary held on June 6, 2006
A pre-election poll had Westly leading Angelides by six percentage points [6]. The Field Poll conducted on April 17, 2006 shows that both Democratic candidates have low recognition factors amongst the state's electorate, with only 45% having any opinion on Angelides and 40% for Westly. Of registered Democrats surveyed, 59% say they don't know enough about Angelides to have any opinion about him, with 58% saying the same for Westly [7].
As of May 27 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported that the race for the Democratic nomination was a virtual tie, with Angelides leading Westly by three percentage points (37%-34%), all within the 3% margin of error. Unusually, 28% of Democratic voters were undecided, and both candidates tried to earn the undecided vote.
Angelides reported a recent increase in support for his campaign and has gained union support and support from the core liberal constituency, while many registered Democrats believed that Westly has a greater chance of winning against incumbent governor Schwarzenegger and felt that he has a slightly "more positive" image [8]. In the end, Angelides won 47.9% of the vote to Westly's 43.4% [9].
The period for candidate nominations closed on March 24, 2006 [10].
[edit] Primary Results
A bar graph of statewide results in this contest are available at http://vote.ss.ca.gov/Returns/gov/00.htm.
Results by county are available at http://vote.ss.ca.gov/Returns/gov/00.htm#cty.
[edit] Democratic Party
| Candidate | # of votes | % of votes |
|---|---|---|
| Phil Angelides | 1,202,851 | 48.0 |
| Steve Westly | 1,081,940 | 43.2 |
| Barbara Becnel | 66,550 | 2.7 |
| Joe Brouillette | 42,075 | 1.7 |
| Michael Strimling | 35,121 | 1.4 |
| Frank A. Macaluso, Jr. | 30,867 | 1.2 |
| Vibert Greene | 25,475 | 1.0 |
| Jerald Robert Gerst | 21,039 | 0.8 |
[edit] Republican Party
| Candidate | # of votes | % of votes |
|---|---|---|
| Arnold Schwarzenegger | 1,724,281 | 90.0 |
| Robert C. Newman II | 68,660 | 3.6 |
| Bill Chambers | 65,487 | 3.4 |
| Jeffrey R. Burns | 57,652 | 3.0 |
For other results, see above links.
[edit] General Election Results
Final results from the California Secretary of State:[11]
| 2006 gubernatorial election, California | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Arnold Schwarzenegger (incumbent) | 4,434,032 | 56.0 | +7.4 | |
| Democratic | Phil Angelides | 3,088,359 | 39.0 | +7.5 | |
| Green | Peter Camejo | 182,518 | 2.3 | -0.5 | |
| Libertarian | Art Olivier | 103,833 | 1.3 | n/a | |
| Peace and Freedom | Janice Jordan | 62,222 | 0.7 | n/a | |
| American Independent | Edward Noonan | 55,727 | 0.7 | n/a | |
| Total votes | 7,926,691 | 100.0% | |||
| Majority | 1,345,673 | 17.0 | -0.1 | ||
| Turnout | |||||
Television networks and the Associated Press called the election for Schwarzenegger minutes after the polls closed, confirming Schwarzenegger's lead throughout the general election campaign. Results showed Scharzenegger won large majorities in California's rural counties and in populous Southern California areas of Orange and San Diego counties. The results were closely contested in Los Angeles County and suburban counties in the Bay Area. Angelides won substantially only in Alameda and San Francisco counties. [12])
[edit] Opinion polls
[edit] General election
[edit] Democratic primary (before June 6, 2006 Primary)
| Source | Date | Westly | Angelides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA | June 5 2006 | 36% | 44% |
| Survey USA | June 2 2006 | 37% | 41% |
| Field Poll | June 2 2006 | 35% | 34% |
| LA Times Poll | May 27 2006 | 34% | 37% |
| Survey USA | May 25 2006 | 32% | 44% |
| Public Policy Institute of California | May 25 2006 | 32% | 35% |
| Survey USA | May 8 2006 | 31% | 41% |
| LA Times Poll | April 29 2006 | 33% | 20% |
| Public Policy Institute of California | April 27 2006 | 26% | 20% |
| Field Poll | April 17 2006 | 37% | 26% |
| Public Policy Institute of California | March 30 2006 | 23% | 22% |
| Field Poll | November 3 2005 | 26% | 37% |
| Field Poll | September 7 2005 | 22% | 32% |
| Field Poll | June 29 2005 | 28% | 37% |
| Field Poll | February 25 2005 | 11% | 15% |
[edit] See also
| California 2006 Elections |
|---|
| US Senate • US House • 50th CD Special Election • Governor • State Senate • State Assembly • Courts of Appeal • Local Elections |
[edit] External links
[edit] Democratic candidates
[edit] Republican candidates
[edit] Third-party and Independent candidates
[edit] Other sites with relevant information
- VoteCircle.com Non-partisan resources & vote sharing network for Californians
- Information on the elections from California's Secretary of State
- Video of the debate
- Election Volunteer - Complete List of 2006 Gubernatorial candidates
- Official Homepage of the Governor of California
| California 2006 Elections |
|---|
| US Senate • US House • 50th CD Special Election • Governor • State Senate • State Assembly • Courts of Appeal • Local Elections |
