The two front-runners for the Democratic nomination were Angelides and California State ControllerSteve Westly. A pre-election poll had Westly leading Angelides by six percentage points.[5] The Field Poll conducted on April 17, 2006 showed that both Democratic candidates had 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% said they didn't know enough about Angelides to have any opinion about him, with 58% saying the same for Westly.[6] 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%), 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 gained union support as well as support from the "core" liberal constituency. The California Democratic Party endorsed him prior to the primary, despite most polls showing that Westly would fare much better against Schwarzenegger in the general election.[7] However, many registered Democrats believed that Westly had a greater chance of winning against incumbent governor Schwarzenegger and felt that he had a slightly "more positive" image.[8] In the end, Angelides won 47.9% of the vote to Westly's 43.4%. The turnout for the primary, was a record low 33.6%,[9] far below the 38% predicted by the Secretary of State,[10] with the turnout of valid ballots cast on election day at 28%.[11]
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,[12] though he ended up solidly defeating his opponents. During his first two years, he 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 and his support for several controversial propositions in 2005. Later, Schwarzenegger's poularity with voters rebounded and he won reelection by a wide margin.
Results by county
Results showed Schwarzenegger won 52 counties while Angelides won 6 (Schwarzenegger won an absolute majority in 48 counties and a plurality in 4 counties while Angelides won an absolute majority in 2 counties and a plurality in 4 counties). Schwarzenegger 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, but which trended towards Angelides. Angelides won substantially only in Alameda and San Francisco counties.[13]