2006 United States Senate election in Maine
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| Elections in Maine |
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The 2006 United States Senate election in Maine was held on November 2, 2006. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe won re-election to a third term.
Candidates
Democratic
- Jean Hay Bright, activist
Independent
- Bill Slavick, peace activist
Republican
- Olympia Snowe, incumbent U.S. Senator
Campaign
Snowe, who had been elected to both of her previous terms by approximately 2 to 1 margins, had never lost an election. The reason why Snowe won by a landslide even when Democrats were winning across the country is because she is a centrist Republican and thus has a very high approval rating in Maine. Meanwhile, her Democratic opponent in the 2006 election, Jean Hay Bright, had never been elected to political office.
Democrats' best hope for taking the seat was that Snowe would retire rather than run in 2006, but there was never any indication that Snowe seriously considered not running for re-election.[1]
The filing deadline for major party candidates was March 15, 2006. The primary was held on June 13, 2006. Olympia Snowe was unopposed for the Republican nomination; Jean Hay Bright narrowly won the Democratic nod with 50.7% of the vote against Eric Mehnert.
Hay Bright announced her candidacy in May 2005. Hay Bright was previously an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination to the House in 1994 and the Senate in 1996.
The race had been called by FOX News for the Republican incumbent Olympia Snowe 23 minutes after the polls had closed. Snowe won re-election by a greater margin than any U.S. Senator that cycle except Indiana's Richard Lugar, who faced only a Libertarian opponent.
Polling
| Source | Date | Snowe (R) | Bright (D) | Slavick (I) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Critical Insights | October 27, 2006 | 74% | 14% | 6% |
| Rasmussen | October 17, 2006 | 70% | 24% | |
| Rasmussen | August 21, 2006 | 68% | 20% | |
| Rasmussen | August 2, 2006 | 69% | 22% | |
| Rasmussen | June 22, 2006 | 66% | 26% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Olympia Snowe (incumbent) | 402,598 | 74.01 | +5.5 | |
| Democratic | Jean Hay Bright | 111,984 | 20.59 | −10.6 | |
| Independent | Bill Slavick | 29,220 | 5.37 | n/a | |
| Majority | 290,614 | 53.42 | |||
| Turnout | 543,981 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
Snowe won in all of Maine's counties, taking at least 60% of the vote in each region.
References
External links
- Snowe's official Senate site
- Snowe's campaign site
- Hay Bright's campaign site
- Mehnert's campaign site
- Slavick's campaign site
- Slavick's campaign website
| Preceded by 2002 Susan Collins |
Maine U.S. Senate elections 2006 |
Succeeded by 2008 |