2006 Florida gubernatorial election
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The 2006 Florida gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Governor Jeb Bush was term-limited, and could not run for re-election. Republican Charlie Crist, the state's Attorney General, won the election. The election was notable in that for the first time, the state elected a Republican governor in three consecutive elections.
Turnout for the 2006 election was down 8.5% from 2002 and down 2.7% from 1998.[1] With Republicans holding the seat, the state avoided the wave in which Democrats netted a gain of six governorships across the nation.[2]
Democrats
Jim Davis won the Democratic primary on September 5. Davis was the Congressman from Florida's 11th congressional district and served in the Florida House of Representatives, where he also served as the Majority Leader. On September 13, Davis selected former State Senator and 2002 gubernatorial candidate Daryl Jones of Miami as his running mate.
The Democratic primary turned heated as it approached primary day. Rod Smith attacked Jim Davis for a 1990 legislative vote denying restitution for two black men wrongfully imprisoned for murder.[3] David countered that Smith was a "pawn" of the sugar industry, and that "big business" and special interests were funding many of Smith's attack ads.[3]
Candidates
- Glenn Aldine Burkett
- Carol Castagnero, retired teacher
- John M. Crotty
- Jim Davis, U.S. Representative
- Rod Smith, State Senator
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jim Davis | 405,879 | 47.3 | |
| Democratic | Rod Smith | 353,161 | 41.2 | |
| Democratic | Carol Castagnero | 45,161 | 5.3 | |
| Democratic | Glenn Burkett | 32,984 | 3.8 | |
| Democratic | John M. Crotty | 20,629 | 2.4 | |
| Total votes | 857,814 | 100 | ||
Republicans
Charlie Crist, the Republican candidate, won the primary on September 5 with 64% of the vote.[5] Crist was Florida's Attorney General at the time. Previously he was elected State Education Commissioner, and has served in the Florida Senate. He faced Bob Graham for his seat in the United States Senate in 1998. On September 13, 2006, Crist announced that State Representative Jeff Kottkamp of Cape Coral would be his running mate.[6]
The GOP primary did not end up being very competitive. Crist touted experience in statewide offices, and a strong fundraising capability.[7] He portrayed himself as relatively moderate on social issues, which created some misgivings among conservative Republicans in the state, but not nearly enough to sway the vote to Tom Gallagher.[3]
Candidates
- Austin Brooks
- Charlie Crist, Attorney General of Florida
- Bernie DeCastro, minister
- Tom Gallagher, Chief Financial Officer of Florida, former State Treasurer-Insurance Commissioner, former Education Commissioner, and candidate for Governor in 1986 and 1994
- Vernon Palmer
- Michael W. St. Jean, minister
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Charlie Crist | 630,816 | 64.0 | |
| Republican | Tom Gallagher | 330,165 | 33.5 | |
| Republican | Vernon Palmer | 13,547 | 1.4 | |
| Republican | Michael W. St. Jean | 11,458 | 1.2 | |
| Total votes | 985,986 | 100 | ||
Reform Party
No Party Affiliation-(NPA)
What is No Party Affiliation? (NPA) also see Independent
- Karl C. Behm – 2008 Presidential Candidate; with Carol Castagnero of Lakeland, Florida for Lt. Governor
- Richard Paul Dembinsky – Wastewater engineer; 2004 candidate for Florida House
- John Wayne Smith – 2006 Candidate for Florida Governor with No Party Affiliation-(NPA) who later ran in 2008 as a Vice Presidential Candidate for the Boston Tea Party
Write-in candidates
- Piotr Blass
- Omari Musa – Socialist Workers Party member
- C.C. Reed
- Bob Wirengard
- Atlee Yarrow – Socialist Party
Election results
Republican Charlie Crist led in the polls over Jim Davis, oftentimes by double digits, in the weeks leading up to election day. This was attributed to Crist's name recognition, the relative ease he had winning the primary, as well as his huge fundraising advantage.[7] Davis emerged from a harsh Democratic primary beaten and bruised, and entered the general election down on campaign funds.[7] Crist was able to tie himself and his polices to the popular outgoing Jeb Bush,[7] and despite a mid-term election wave that favored Democrats, Crist won by over 7%.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Charlie Crist | 2,519,845 | 52.2 | −3.8 | |
| Democratic | Jim Davis | 2,178,289 | 45.1 | +1.9 | |
| Reform | Max Linn | 92,595 | 1.9 | n/a | |
| Independent | John Wayne Smith – NPA | 15,987 | 0.3 | n/a | |
| Independent | Richard Paul Dembinsky – NPA | 11,921 | 0.2 | n/a | |
| Independent | Karl Behm – NPA | 10,487 | 0.2 | n/a | |
| Write-ins | 147 | 0.0 | 0 | ||
| Majority | 341,556 | 7.1 | −5.7 | ||
| Turnout | 4,829,271 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
Opinion polling
Gubernatorial race
| Source | Date | Crist (R) | Davis (D) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA | November 6, 2006 | 49% | 47% |
| Strategic Vision | November 6, 2006 | 51% | 44% |
| Orlando Sentinel | November 3, 2006 | 50% | 43% |
| Mason-Dixon | November 3, 2006 | 50% | 43% |
| Strategic Vision | November 2, 2006 | 50% | 44% |
| Zogby/WSJ | October 31, 2006 | 49.9% | 45.1% |
| St. Petersburg Times | October 28, 2006 | 48% | 42% |
| Rasmussen | October 26, 2006 | 52% | 41% |
| Strategic Vision | October 25, 2006 | 51% | 42% |
| Quinnipiac | October 23, 2006 | 46% | 44% |
| Zogby/WSJ | October 19, 2006 | 50.2% | 41% |
| Rasmussen | October 18, 2006 | 46% | 41% |
| Rasmussen | October 2, 2006 | 54% | 38% |
| Strategic Vision | September 28, 2006 | 50% | 40% |
| Zogby/WSJ | September 25, 2006 | 50.1% | 36.6% |
| Rasmussen | September 19, 2006 | 45% | 40% |
| Zogby/WSJ | September 11, 2006 | 50.6% | 36.4% |
| Rasmussen | September 5, 2006 | 45% | 41% |
| Strategic Vision | August 30, 2006 | 49% | 41% |
| Zogby/WSJ | August 28, 2006 | 52.4% | 38.5% |
| Rasmussen | August 1, 2006 | 47% | 42% |
| Quinnipiac | July 26, 2006 | 44% | 38% |
| Strategic Vision | July 26, 2006 | 49% | 39% |
| Mason-Dixon | July 24, 2006 | 48% | 32% |
| Zogby/WSJ | July 24, 2006 | 42.8% | 39.0% |
| Quinnipiac | June 29, 2006 | 41% | 39% |
| Rasmussen | June 29, 2006 | 49% | 35% |
| Strategic Vision | June 28, 2006 | 49% | 41% |
| Zogby/WSJ | June 21, 2006 | 42.5% | 39.8% |
| Strategic Vision | May 25, 2006 | 48% | 40% |
| Quinnipiac | May 24, 2006 | 37% | 40% |
| Rasmussen | May 22, 2006 | 44% | 39% |
| Rasmussen | April 21, 2006 | 44% | 33% |
| Quinnipiac | April 19, 2006 | 37% | 39% |
| Quinnipiac | February 22, 2006 | 40% | 36% |
| Rasmussen | January 6, 2006 | 36% | 35% |
| Rasmussen | November 16, 2005 | 38% | 41% |
| Quinnipiac | November 15, 2005 | 39% | 40% |
See also
- U.S. gubernatorial elections, 2006
- Governor of Florida
- List of Governors of Florida
- Florida United States Senate election, 2006
References
- ^ Florida Department of State – Division of Elections (Election Results)
- ^ Clark, Amy (November 8, 2006). "Democrats Retake Majority Of Governorships". CBS News. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
- ^ a b c Goodnough, Abby (September 6, 2006). "In Days Before Primary, Hackles Start Rising in Race for Florida Governor". The New York Times. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
- ^ a b https://doe.dos.state.fl.us/elections/resultsarchive/Index.asp?ElectionDate=9/5/2006&DATAMODE=
- ^ http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/elections/2006/by_state/FL_Page_0905.html?SITE=WFTSELN&SECTION=POLITICS
- ^ http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/15508247.htm
- ^ a b c d Phillips, Lauren (October 9, 2006). "Easy GOP Primary Win Puts Crist Ahead in Fla. Governor Race". The New York Times. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
