The 2006 Oregon gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Governor of Oregon The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. te ...

Ted Kulongoski Theodore Ralph Kulongoski ( ; born November 5, 1940) is an American politician, judge, and lawyer who served as the 36th Governor of Oregon from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in both houses of the Oregon Legislative As ...

ran for a second and final term as governor. Kulongoski faced several challengers in his primary, whom he dispatched to win his party's nomination a second time, while Republican nominee Ron Saxton, the former Chair of the Portland Public Schools Board and a candidate for governor in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains independence from Indonesia and ...

emerged from a crowded primary. Kulongoski and Saxton were initially going to be challenged in the general election by

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 ...

Ben Westlund, but Westlund withdrew his candidacy before the general election. There were multiple

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

and

third party Third party may refer to: Business * Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller * Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party * Third-party insurance, such as a Veh ...

challengers on the ballot as well. In a hard-fought campaign, Kulongoski won re-election by a surprisingly wide margin, winning his second term as governor. As of 2022, this marks the last occasion in which the following counties have voted Democratic in a gubernatorial election: Clackamas,

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

, Marion, and Wasco.

Democratic primary

Candidates

, incumbent

* Jim Hill, former

Oregon State Treasurer The Oregon State Treasurer is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, elected by statewide vote to serve a four-year term. As chief financial officer for the state, the office holder heads ...

Democratic candidate for

* Peter Sorenson, Lane County Commissioner

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

* Ron Saxton, former Chair of the Portland Public Schools Board * Kevin Mannix, former

Oregon State Representative The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 65,000. The House meets in the west wing of the ...

Republican nominee for

* Jason Atkinson, Oregon State Senator *W. Ames Curtright *Gordon Leitch *William E. Spidal *David W. Beem *Bob Leonard Forthan, perennial candidate

Results

General election

Campaign

As the Democratic and Republican primaries intensified,

Ben Westlund, a registered Republican, announced that he would run for governor as an

. Though Westlund gathered the requisite signatures to be able to run, he eventually dropped out of the race in August, noting, "At the beginning of this campaign, I made a commitment to the people of Oregon, that I was in it to win it, and that I absolutely would not play a spoiler role." Constitution Party nominee Mary Starrett was widely perceived to win votes largely at the expense of Saxton's campaign.

Predictions

Polling

Results

References

;Official campaigns websites
Ted Kulongoski (D) for Governor

Ron Saxton (R) for Governor
{{2006 U.S. midterm elections 2006

Gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

Democratic primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

General election

Campaign

Predictions

Polling

Results

See also

References