2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election

2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election

November 7, 2006

Nominee Bill Richardson John Dendahl Party Democratic Republican Running mate Diane Denish Sue Wilson Beffort Popular vote 384,806 174,364 Percentage 68.8% 31.2%

County Results Richardson:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Dendahl:      50–60%

Governor before election Bill Richardson Democratic Elected Governor Bill Richardson Democratic

The 2006 New Mexico gubernatorial election was a race for the Governor of New Mexico held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic Governor Bill Richardson was running for re-election. He faced Republican John Dendahl in the general election and won by a landslide. As of 2024, this is the last time a man was elected Governor of New Mexico.

Primary candidates

Democratic

• Bill Richardson, incumbent Governor of New Mexico
• Anselmo A. Chavez, veteran and perennial candidate

Republican

• James R. Damron, physician
• George Brent Bailey, Jr., educator and minister

General election candidates

• Bill Richardson (Democrat), incumbent Governor of New Mexico
• John Dendahl (Republican), former chair of the Republican Party of New Mexico

Campaign

Damron defeated Bailey in the Republican primary, but withdrew from the race on June 17, 2006 due to a lack of fundraising. John Dendahl was appointed by the Republican State Central Committee to replace him. There were no general election debates between the two candidates.

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Bill Richardson (D)	John Dendahl (R)	Other	Undecided
Research & Polling Inc. of Albuquerque	September 25–28, 2006	—	—	60%	28%	—	—
Rasmussen Reports	September 7, 2006	—	—	61%	26%	—	—
Research & Polling Inc. of Albuquerque	August 25–31, 2006	—	—	57%	28%	—	—
Rasmussen Reports	June 26, 2006	—	—	56%	32%	—	—

Results

New Mexico gubernatorial election, 2006

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Bill Richardson (incumbent)	384,806	68.82%	+13.33%
	Republican	John Dendahl	174,364	31.18%	-7.86%
Majority			210,442	37.63%	+21.19%
Turnout			559,170
	Democratic hold		Swing

See also

• United States gubernatorial elections, 2006

External links

Campaign websites (Archived)

• Bill Richardson
• John Dendahl