2006 United States Senate election in New Mexico, General election, Campaign
Bingaman had a 60% approval rating in one poll. He faced no primary opposition. There had been speculation that Bingaman would give up the chance to run for another term to pursue a lobbyists' job in Washington.


2006 United States Senate election in New Mexico, General election, Results
Bingaman won every county in the state with at least 56% of the vote.


2006 United States Senate election in New York
The 2006 United States Senate election in New York was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton won re-election to a second term in office, by a more than two-to-one margin. Clinton was challenged by Republican John Spencer, former Mayor of Yonkers, and longtime political activist Howie Hawkins of the Green Party.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic nomination, Campaign
Hillary Clinton announced in November 2004 that she would seek a second term in the Senate, and began fundraising and campaigning. Clinton faced opposition for the Democratic party nomination from the anti-war base of her own party, that had become increasingly frustrated with her support for the Iraq War.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic nomination, Campaign
On October 12, 2005 New Paltz firefighter and activist Steven Greenfield, a former Green Party leader, announced he would run as a Democrat. On December 6, 2005, labor advocate Jonathan Tasini announced that he would run as well, running as an antiwar candidate, calling for immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq, universal health care, expansion in Medicare benefits, the creation of Universal Voluntary Accounts for pensions, and what he termed "New Rules For the Economy", a more labor-centric as opposed to the corporate-centric approach to economic matters espoused by Clinton.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic nomination, Campaign
Tasini was president of Economic Future Group and former president of the National Writers Union. Tasini was supported by anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, who had in October said of Clinton, "I will resist her candidacy with every bit of my power and strength...I will not make the mistake of supporting another pro-war Democrat for president again."


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic nomination, Campaign
On March 31, 2006, businessman Mark Greenstein announced his run for the seat. Greenstein, endorsed by the New Democrats, presented himself as a non-liberal Democrat who was campaigning to "bring the far left back to reality that Big Government is the source of most ongoing problems Democrat constituents face." He contended that Clinton was "too liberal" in her support for regulations, "too wishy-washy" on the Iraq war and on gay rights, and had lost integrity by using the Dubai Ports issue for political purposes. Greenstein challenged Clinton to sign a pledge that she would serve out her full 6 year Senate term if re-elected. However, in May 2006, Greenfield endorsed Tasini and essentially dropped out of the race.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic nomination, Campaign
On June 1, 2006, Clinton accepted the unanimous endorsement of the New York State Democratic Party's convention in Buffalo. Eight days later, Greenstein dropped out of the race. Tasini pressed on, submitting 40,000 signatures to the State Election Commission on July 14, far more than the 15,000 needed to force a primary. Clinton's campaign said that she would not challenge the signatures.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
New York Republicans originally had high hopes of mounting a serious challenge to Clinton, and derailing her expected future presidential bid. However, Clinton was politically strong in the state and no major Republican entered the race, with Governor George Pataki and early 2000 senate opponent Rudy Giuliani both declining to run. The two most prominent Republicans contemplating a challenge to Clinton were lawyer Ed Cox (the son-in-law of former President Richard M. Nixon) and Westchester County District Attorney Jeanine Pirro.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
Pirro was considered the front-runner, but her campaign had immediate difficulties. During her August 10, 2005 live televised candidacy announcement in New York City, she paused for more than thirty seconds looking for a missing part of her speech, then asked, on the air, "Do I have page 10?" Democrats re-aired the sequence as part of a Jeopardy! theme parody. The Conservative Party of New York was also reluctant to embrace Pirro. On August 18, 2005, another Republican candidate, former Mayor of Yonkers John Spencer, gave a radio interview in which he attacked Pirro, calling her chances of winning the Conservative Party of New York State nomination "a Chinaman's chance." Spencer later apologized.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
On October 14, 2005, Governor Pataki endorsed Pirro. Later that day, Cox withdrew from the race; his campaign had raised only $114,249 in contributions in the prior three months. On October 18, 2005, remarks by Pirro that appeared to suggest that Democrats were indifferent to child molesters and murderers drew sharp criticism from the Clinton campaign and others.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
Pirro trailed Clinton badly in fund-raising and in polls; her campaign had failed to gain traction. Under pressure from state party officials, she dropped out of the race on December 21, 2005, to run for New York State Attorney General instead, leaving the Republicans without a well-known candidate. The announcement was timed to coincide with the 2005 New York City transit strike, so as to draw minimal attention to the Republicans' difficulties. Pirro did not mention her campaign woes, but instead said, "I have concluded that my head and my heart remain in law enforcement, and that my public service should continue to be in that arena."


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
Declared Republican nominees now included Spencer and K. T. McFarland, who was a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs under President Ronald Reagan. Cox considered reentering the race but did not. Politically, Spencer was generally opposed to abortion, against gun control, and a supporter of tighter border security. He supported the George W. Bush administration and its policies, including the war in Iraq. Spencer came out in favor of New York's Court of Appeals denying same-sex marriage to 42 gay and lesbian couples who challenged that denial as unconstitutional.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
Spencer said that marriage equality for same-sex couples equated to "special rights for gays." Spencer was endorsed by Republican officials such as Congressman Vito Fossella. In contrast, McFarland was pro-choice. However, McFarland ran into trouble with a March comment that appeared to allege that the Clinton campaign had been flying helicopters low over her Southampton, New York house and spying on her; she later said she had been joking, but the episode upset her. In May, McFarland's campaign manager Ed Rollins made personal life charges against Spencer, to which the latter responded, "Shame on you."


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Campaign
On May 31, 2006, Spencer won the endorsement of the state Republican Party organization but did not achieve the threshold of 75 percent he needed to prevent McFarland from gaining an automatic position on the primary ballot. He received 63 percent and would thus have to face McFarland in the September 12 Republican primary. Spencer called on McFarland to step aside after the vote, but McFarland said she would not. In a June 2006 radio ad, Spencer attacked national Republicans for not funding his campaign. On August 22, McFarland announced that she would be suspending her campaign until further notice after her daughter was caught shoplifting.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Republican nomination, Results
On September 12, 2006, Spencer defeated McFarland in the Republican Primary, winning 61 to 39 percent of the vote. Republican turnout was less than 6%, the lowest level in more than 30 years. Spencer would also gain the Conservative Party line.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Third party nominations, Green
Howie Hawkins was the Green Party's candidate for the United States Senate in the state of New York.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Third party nominations, Green
His signature campaign issue was the Iraq War. Specifically, Hawkins criticized Senator Clinton's endorsement of the Iraq war resolution, and continued support for an American troop presence in Iraq.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Third party nominations, Green
Hawkins pledged to implement what he described as a modern-day version of the Hatfield–Kennedy Amendment (a proposed Senate resolution intended to cut off funding for the Vietnam War) which would defund military operations for the U.S. Armed Forces unless and until they were redeployed out of theater, and possibly replaced by an international peacekeeping force.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Third party nominations, Green
He called upon supporters of Tasini to vote for him in the general election.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Third party nominations, Libertarian
Jeff Russell was nominated as the official Libertarian Party candidate for United States Senate at the Libertarian Party of New York Convention on April 29, 2006, in Albany.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
Clinton spent $36 million for her re-election, more than any other candidate for Senate in the 2006 elections.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
Polls during the campaign generally showed Clinton with a 20-point lead or better over Spencer, with none of the third-party candidates — Hawkins, Bill Van Auken of the Socialist Equality Party, and Jeff Russell of the Libertarian Party — showing strength.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
On November 7, 2006, Clinton won easily, garnering 67% of the vote to Spencer's 31%.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Results
The election was not close, with Clinton winning 58 of New York's 62 counties. Clinton had a surprisingly strong performance in upstate New York which tends to be tossup. When Clinton's upstate margins combined with her huge numbers out of New York City, there was no coming back for the Republicans. Clinton was sworn in for what would be her last term in the senate serving from January 3, 2007 to January 21, 2009 when she assumed the office of United States Secretary of State.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Analysis
Clinton's victory margin over her Republican opponent (67%–31%) was a significant gain over her showing in the 2000 senate race against Rick Lazio (55%–43%). She carried all but four of New York's sixty-two counties.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Analysis
It was the second-largest margin of victory for a Senate race in New York history, and the third-largest for a statewide race in New York. Clinton's 2006 margin did not quite equal the percentage received by Eliot Spitzer in the concurrent gubernatorial race (69%%–29%) nor by Charles Schumer in his 2004 Senate re-election campaign (71%%–24%), both of which had also been against little-known Republican opponents.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Legacy
Jeanine Pirro would go on to get the Republican nomination for New York State Attorney General, but lost in the 2006 attorney general election to Democrat Andrew Cuomo.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Legacy
Clinton was criticized by some Democrats for spending too much in a one-sided contest, while some supporters were concerned she did not leave more funds for a potential presidential bid in 2008. In the following months she transferred $10 million of her Senate funds toward her 2008 presidential campaign.


2006 United States Senate election in New York, Legacy
Following her Attorney General loss, Pirro left electoral politics and became a television judge and political commentator. Spencer left politics altogether. Tasani ran for a House seat in 2010 but was not competitive. Clinton fell short in her 2008 presidential nomination bid, served as U.S. Secretary of State for four years, and then ran again in the 2016 United States presidential election but suffered a general election loss. The candidate from this 2006 senate campaign whose officeholding instanced furthest into the future turned out to be McFarland, who in 2017 became U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor.


2006 United States Senate election in North Dakota
The 2006 United States Senate election in North Dakota was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic-NPL U.S. Senator Kent Conrad won re-election to a fourth term.


2006 United States Senate election in North Dakota, Campaign
Popular Republican governor John Hoeven was heavily recruited by prominent national Republicans, including Karl Rove and Dick Cheney to run against Conrad. SurveyUSA polls showed that both Conrad and Hoeven had among the highest approval ratings of any Senators and governors in the nation. A poll conducted by PMR (8/26-9/3 MoE 3.9) for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead had as result for a hypothetical matchup: Hoeven-35%, Conrad-27%, Uncommitted-38%. This poll showed voter conflict between two very popular politicians in a small state where  party loyalty is often trumped by personality. In late September 2005, Hoeven formally declined. Hoeven ran for the Senate in 2010 and was elected by a landslide, in that year's Republican midterm wave.


2006 United States Senate election in North Dakota, Results
Conrad won at least 53% of the vote in every county in the state.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio
The 2006 United States Senate election in Ohio was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Mike DeWine ran for re-election, but was defeated by Democratic congressman Sherrod Brown. As of 2021, this is the most recent time a Democratic Senate candidate in Ohio won a race by double digits. DeWine would later successfully run for attorney general and governor of Ohio in 2010 and 2018, respectively.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, Background
The incumbent Republican Senator R. Michael DeWine had approval ratings at 38%, making him the second most unpopular U.S. Senator behind Pennsylvania Republican Rick Santorum, who was also up for reelection in 2006. Pre -election stories in the U.S. media suggested that the national Republican Party may have given up on saving Senator DeWine's Senate seat before election day. Sherrod Brown, former Ohio Secretary of State and U.S. Representative from Ohio's 13th district easily won the Democratic nomination over his opponent Merrill Keiser Jr.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, Republican primary, Campaign
Both candidates campaigned as conservative alternatives to DeWine, citing DeWine's support for legal abortion and his role as one of the Republican members of the Gang of 14 who compromised with Democrats in a dispute about judicial appointments.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Campaign
The Republican party, which was facing multiple challenges to their Senate majority, was initially determined to assist DeWine is his competitive race while the National Democratic party supported Brown in hopes of taking control of the Senate. John McClelland, a spokesman for the Ohio Republican Party said, "It's vitally important to the Republican Party as a whole, so I think that's why you see the president coming to Ohio to support Mike DeWine." Phil Singer, a spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee said, "Mike DeWine Senior is in for the fight of his life, make no mistake about it."


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Campaign
On July 14, 2006, DeWine's campaign began airing TV commercials depicting a smoking World Trade Center. "The senator was notified... by a reporter at U.S. News & World Report that the image of the burning Twin Towers could not have depicted the actual event because the smoke was blowing the wrong way." DeWine's campaign admitted that the video was actually a still photo of the World Trade Center with smoke digitally added. He also was criticized for using an emotionally charged image to attack his challenger.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Campaign
Another of DeWine's ads suggested that opponent Sherrod Brown didn't pay his taxes for thirteen years. This claim led to the Associated Press reporting on October 19 that, "Several Ohio television stations have stopped airing a Republican ad because state documents contradict the ad's accusation that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Sherrod Brown didn't pay an unemployment tax bill for 13 years." Brown produced a commercial citing these facts. DeWine's ads were changed to state only that he had failed to pay his unemployment taxes until legal action was taken against him.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Campaign
According to an article in the October 16, 2006, edition of The New York Times, top Republican party officials on the national level determined that DeWine would probably be defeated and were moving financial support from his race to other Republican senatorial candidates they felt were more likely to win.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Fundraising
During the election cycle, DeWine raised $14.9 million and spent $15.5 million. Brown raised $8.9 million and spent $10.8 million.


2006 United States Senate election in Ohio, General election, Results
Brown was declared the winner right when the polls closed in Ohio at 7:30. DeWine had the second worst performance of a Republican incumbent in 2006; only Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum had a worse performance. While DeWine was able to win rural counties in western Ohio, Brown managed to win most eastern Ohio counties, especially in heavily populated areas. DeWine's narrow 2,000 vote victory in Hamilton County which is home to Cincinnati, came nowhere close to making a dent in Brown's lead. Brown would go on to be reelected to a second term in 2012, and a third term in 2018. Also in 2018, both Brown and DeWine were on the ballot but this time for different races; DeWine would be elected Governor of Ohio.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
The 2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Rick Santorum ran for re-election to a third term, but was defeated by Democrat Bob Casey, Jr., the son of former Pennsylvania governor Bob Casey Sr. Casey was elected to serve between January 3, 2007 and January 3, 2013.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
Santorum trailed Casey in every public poll taken during the campaign. Casey's margin of victory (nearly 18% of those who voted) was the largest ever for a Democratic Senate nominee in Pennsylvania, the largest margin of victory for a Senate challenger in the 2006 elections, and the largest general election margin of defeat for an incumbent U.S. Senator since 1980. Casey was the first Pennsylvania Democrat to win a full term in the Senate since Joseph S. Clark Jr. in 1962.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Republican primary
John Featherman, who ran against Santorum in 2000 as a Libertarian, had been expected to challenge him in the 2006 Republican primary. However, Featherman withdrew his candidacy after a GOP petition challenge because he did not have the necessary number of signatures to get on the ballot. As a result, Santorum won the Republican nomination unopposed.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's support for Arlen Specter
Republican strategists took Santorum's primary result in 2006 as a bad omen, in which he ran unopposed for the Republican nomination. Republican gubernatorial nominee Lynn Swann, also unopposed, garnered 22,000 more votes statewide than Santorum in the primary, meaning thousands of Republican voters abstained from endorsing Santorum for another Senate term. This may have been partly due to Santorum's support for Arlen Specter, over Congressman Pat Toomey in the 2004 Republican primary for the U.S. Senate.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's support for Arlen Specter
Even though Santorum is only slightly less conservative than Toomey, he joined virtually all of the state and national Republican establishment in supporting the moderate Specter. This led many socially and fiscally conservative Republicans to consider Santorum's support of Specter to be a betrayal of their cause. However, Santorum says he supported Specter to avoid risking a Toomey loss in the general election, which would prevent President George W. Bush's judicial nominees from getting through the Senate. Santorum says Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito would not have been confirmed without the help of Specter, who was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the time.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's controversial views
In the Senate, Santorum was an outspoken conservative from a state with a history of electing moderates. This led many political commentators to speculate that his low approval ratings were due to some of his more controversial statements and opinions.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's controversial views
Among these controversies were his views on the privatization of Social Security and the teaching of intelligent design in public schools. In addition, his involvement in the Terri Schiavo case was considered by many in his state to be out of place.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's controversial views
All this left Santorum in a precarious position throughout the race. On May 31, 2006, the polling firm Rasmussen Reports declared that Santorum was the "most vulnerable incumbent" among the Senators running for re-election. SurveyUSA polling taken right before the election showed that Santorum was the least popular of all 100 Senators, with a 38% approval rating and a net approval rating of -19%.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's residency
While Santorum maintained a small residence in Penn Hills, a township near Pittsburgh, his family primarily lived in a large house in Leesburg, a suburb of Washington, D.C. in Northern Virginia. Santorum faced charges of hypocrisy from critics who noted the similarities between his living situation and that of former Representative Doug Walgren, who Santorum defeated in 1990. Back then, Santorum had claimed that Walgren was out of touch with his district; these claims were backed up with commercials showing Walgren's home in the Virginia suburbs.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's residency
On NBC's Meet the Press on September 3, 2006, Santorum admitted that he only spent "maybe a month a year, something like that" at his Pennsylvania residence.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Santorum's residency
Santorum also drew criticism for enrolling five of his six children in an online "cyber school" in Pennsylvania's Allegheny County (home to Pittsburgh and most of its suburbs), despite the fact that the children lived in Virginia. The Penn Hills School District was billed $73,000 in tuition for the cyber classes.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Casey's momentum
Santorum began his contrast campaign against Casey early, charging him with relentlessly seeking higher political office and failing to take definitive stands on issues. While these charges kept the race competitive, in late September and through October, Casey's campaign seemed to regain the momentum it had had throughout most of the campaign, as most polls showed Casey widening his lead after a summer slump. In a Quinnipiac University Polling Institute poll, released on September 26, 2006, Casey was favored by 14 points. An October 18, 2006 poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports showed Casey with a similar double-digit lead. In the Rasmussen poll, only 46% of voters surveyed had a favorable view of Santorum, while 57% of voters viewed Casey favorably.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Negative advertisements
At least one of Santorum's television ads called into question his campaign's use of the facts regarding Casey and people who had donated money to the Casey campaign. The ad, which aired in September, showed several men seated around a table, while talking amongst themselves and smoking cigars, inside a jail cell. While none of the figures, who were played by actors, were named personally, the narrator provided the job descriptions, previous donations to Casey, and ethical and/or legal troubles of each. The Santorum campaign later provided the names of the people portrayed.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Campaign, Negative advertisements
An editorial in Casey's hometown newspaper, The Times-Tribune, pointed out that all but one of the contributions "[was] made to Casey campaigns when he was running for other offices, at which time none of the contributors were known to be under investigation for anything." In fact, two of the persons cited in the Santorum campaign ad had actually given contributions to Santorum's 2006 Senate campaign. Another of the figures portrayed had died in 2004. Political scientist Larry Sabato called the ad "over the top" and suspected that the fallout would hurt Santorum.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, Results
At 9:45 PM EST on Election Night, Santorum called Casey to concede defeat.


2006 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, General election, By congressional district
Bob Casey Jr won 14 of 19 congressional districts, including the 3rd, 6th, 15th and 18th  districts, which elected Republicans to the House.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island
The 2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Lincoln Chafee sought re-election to the seat he had held since 1999, when he was appointed to fill the vacancy created by the death of his father John Chafee. He lost to Democratic nominee Sheldon Whitehouse by a 7 point margin.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, Democratic primary, Campaign
Whitehouse was endorsed by U.S. Senator Jack Reed, U.S. Congressmen Jim Langevin and Patrick J. Kennedy, as well as by former candidate Matt Brown. Sheeler, a former U.S. Marine, a business owner, and an adjunct professor of business, ran on a more progressive platform. Ultimately, however, Whitehouse would trounce his competition in the primary on September 12, winning his party's support by a large margin.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, Republican primary, Campaign
Incumbent Lincoln Chafee was one of the most liberal members of the Republican Party in the Senate by 2006, and was challenged for the Republican nomination by Laffey who had criticized Chafee for his liberal voting record in the Senate. In early 2006, the Club for Growth, a pro-tax cut political action committee, sent a series of mailings to Rhode Island Republicans attacking Chafee's positions and voting record.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, Republican primary, Campaign
The national GOP supported Chafee in the primary campaign, believing that he was the most likely candidate to hold the seat in the general election. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Senator John McCain of Arizona and First Lady Laura Bush appeared at fundraisers for Chafee, while Senator Bill Frist's PAC donated to Chafee. The National Republican Senatorial Committee also ran ads in the state supporting Chafee. Steve Laffey, however, picked up many endorsements from Republican town committees throughout Rhode Island, the national group Club for Growth, and former candidate for the party's Presidential nomination Steve Forbes. On July 10, 2006, the National Republican Senatorial Committee filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Laffey, saying that he had included a political communication in tax bills mailed to residents of Cranston.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, General election, Campaign
Democrats believed that this was one of the most likely Senate seats to switch party control, due to the Democratic tilt of Rhode Island, as well as the fact that Chafee needed to expend part of his campaign fund to win the Republican primary election. Chafee's approval ratings also took a beating from his primary battle with Laffey and may have hurt him in the general election.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, General election, Campaign
Another factor that hurt Chafee was the fact that Whitehouse, the Democratic nominee, had a huge head start on him, as he was able to campaign with little opposition for at least half the year and had not had to contend with a major opponent until the general election campaign. Rhode Islanders' historically large disapproval ratings for President Bush and the Republican Party as a whole was another major hurdle for Chafee.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, General election, Issues
Whitehouse and Chafee did not have large differences on political issues. On social issues, they were almost entirely in agreement with each other. Chafee was also against the Bush tax cuts. On fiscal issues, such as social security and trade, they were however in disagreement.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, General election, Analysis
Whitehouse carried Providence County, which contains approximately 60% of the state's population, with 59% to Chafee's 41%. Chafee's strongest showing was in Washington County (South County), where he took 55% of the vote against Whitehouse's 45%. Chafee also took Kent County by a small margin, while Whitehouse was victorious by extremely slim margins in Bristol and Newport Counties.


2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island, General election, Analysis
After the election, when asked by a reporter if he thought his defeat would help the country by giving Democrats control of Congress, Chafee replied, "to be honest, yes."


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee
The 2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Senator Bill Frist, the Majority Leader, retired after two terms in office. The open seat was won by Republican nominee Bob Corker, who defeated Democratic nominee Harold Ford Jr.. The race between Ford and Corker was one of the most competitive Senate races of 2006, with Corker winning the race by less than three percent of the vote. Corker was the only non-incumbent Republican to win a U.S. Senate seat in 2006. Since 1994, the Republican Party has held both of Tennessee's U.S. Senate seats.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee
This election is also notable for being the last time Grundy County has voted for the Democratic candidate in a statewide election.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Democratic primary, Campaign
Harold Ford was a Congressman from the 9th Congressional District, based in Memphis, and he was a member of a political family, with many relatives also serving or formerly in political office. He was known nationally for his keynote address at the 2000 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, and for a challenge to Nancy Pelosi for leadership of the House Democrats in 2002. He had also served as a national campaign co-chair for the John Kerry presidential campaign in 2004.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Democratic primary, Campaign
Ford filed paperwork to run for the U.S. Senate in May 2005.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Democratic primary, Campaign
Democratic State Senator Rosalind Kurita, from the 22nd District centered on Clarksville, Tennessee had entered the race prior to Ford, and initially appeared to be competitive, releasing internal polls showing her as strong as Ford in the general election. But she dropped out of the race in early April 2006, as a result of financial and organizational challenges.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Democratic primary, Campaign
Ford enjoyed substantial support from Democratic leaders in Washington and Nashville and held a substantial lead in fundraising.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Republican primary, Campaign
Only 11 percent of Tennesseans knew who Corker was when he began running for the Senate race. All three have run statewide campaigns in the past, albeit unsuccessful ones: Bryant for the 2002 Republican Senate nomination, losing to Lamar Alexander; Corker for the U.S. Senate in 1994, losing to Frist in the Republican primary; and Hilleary for Tennessee Governor in 2002, losing to Democrat Phil Bredesen.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, Republican primary, Debates
The three Republican candidates met for a debate at the University of Tennessee campus in Knoxville on June 29, 2006. All three candidates expressed skepticism regarding global warming and recent publication of scientific consensus on the issue, supported continued American involvement in Iraq, opposed income tax increases, and "showed varying degrees of interest in replacing the federal income tax with a national sales tax," prompting Corker to state in his closing statement "[t]here's not any difference, that I can tell, on the issues."


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
Not long after Corker's primary victory was assured, Ford, at a rally of his supporters attended by Bill Clinton, challenged Corker to seven televised debates across the state. In response, Corker said he will debate Ford but did not agree to Ford's request of seven debates. Both of Corker's primary opponents endorsed Corker immediately after they conceded the race.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
On August 8, 2006, the Tennessee Democratic Party filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Corker for allegedly violating campaign financial disclosure rules.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
On August 25, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported that Corker had received a subpoena regarding an environmental lawsuit filed three years ago. The lawsuit centers on the actions Corker took as mayor to allegedly demolish a conservation site to build a road that leads to a Wal-Mart SuperCenter. Corker was scheduled to testify on October 18, but the case was settled on October 13.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
Ford, a member of the Blue Dog Coalition in Congress, sought to run as a centrist, recognizing that Tennessee was a conservative state. While he was a member of a political dynasty in Memphis, this also served as a liability, as his state senator uncle was indicted on federal corruption charges the day after he announced his Senate candidacy.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
As the campaign entered October, Ford was leading in some polls. Despite running a strong campaign, he was hampered by his family's legal issues and the fact that his base was in West Tennessee, as opposed to Corker's base in East Tennessee.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
Before a Corker press conference in Memphis on October 20, Ford approached Corker in a parking lot and confronted his opponent about Iraq in front of local news cameras, pointing out that some of Corker's fellow Republicans are changing their minds on the war and wanting to debate him about the issue. In response, Corker said, "I came to talk about ethics, and I have a press conference. And I think it's a true sign of desperation that you would pull your bus up when I'm having a press conference." Ford replied that he could never find Corker. Corker then walked away to his press conference.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Campaign
On November 2, Nielsen Monitor Plus indicated that the Corker campaign had purchased more television advertising than any other Senate candidate in the country through October 15.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Debates
3 debates were held between Corker and Ford. They participated in a televised debate in Memphis on October 7, in Chattanooga on October 10, and in Nashville on October 28.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Debates
In the October 7, 2006 debate in Memphis, the candidates covered a wide range of issues, including immigration, Iraq, cutting health care costs, abortion, and Social Security. Commenting on Ford's political family, Corker said, "I think it's evident there's been a Ford in this (9th District congressional district) seat for 32 years, and if you look at the number of Fords that are on the ballot—especially I think the most recent one, I know it concerns a lot of people right here in Memphis." Ford responded, "I don't know why Mr. Corker keeps bringing up my family. . . . It's you and I running for the Senate. It's our ideas, our plans to make the future better for everybody. Let's stick to you and I. And if you come up with a recipe to pick family, say it. Otherwise be quiet and let's run for the Senate."


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Debates
The October 10 Chattanooga debate covered many of the same issues, with Corker again attempting to make Ford's family an issue and Ford claiming that Corker would be merely a "rubber stamp" for the Bush administration and Republican Party in the Senate.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Debates
The final debate took place on October 28, in Nashville and mostly covered the economy.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Controversial advertisement
A negative ad titled "Who Hasn't?" sponsored by the Republican National Committee ("RNC") that aired during the third and fourth weeks of October gained national attention and was condemned by both Ford and Corker. The ad ridiculed Ford through interviews of fictional citizens giving deadpan endorsements that satirized Ford's policies and reputation, such as "terrorists need their privacy" and "taxes after I'm dead". The last of these is a scantily clad white woman (Johanna Goldsmith) acting as a Playboy bunny who "met Harold at the Playboy party", who invites Ford to "call me".


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Controversial advertisement
Responding to questions about the ad, a Ford spokesperson said that Ford went to a 2005 Playboy-sponsored Super Bowl party that was attended by more than 3,000 people, and Ford himself said that he likes "football and girls" and makes no apology for either.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Controversial advertisement
The NAACP described the ad as "a powerful innuendo that plays to pre-existing prejudices about African-American men and white women", and a former Republican Senator called it "a very serious appeal to a racist sentiment. Corker condemned the RNC ad, calling it "tacky" and stating that his campaign has asked to have it pulled. The RNC, however, continued to endorse the ad, said it had no plans to stop airing it, and dismissed charges of racism, saying it "wouldn't even entertain the premise" that the ad was racist. In an October 24 interview with Tim Russert, RNC chairman Ken Mehlman said that he thought the ad was "fair" and that he did not have the authority to pull it.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Controversial advertisement
The ad was also denounced by Canada's ambassador to the United States, Michael Wilson, and in the Parliament of Canada by MP Omar Alghabra. The ad became an issue in Canada because of an actor's statement in the advertisement, "Canada can take care of North Korea. They’re not busy." Alghabra, in the House of Commons, responded, "Is this what Canadians should be expecting as the outcome of cozying up to Mr. Bush by the prime minister and his Conservatives?"


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Controversial advertisement
On October 25, Mehlman announced that the ad was "down now" during an interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. In its place, Tennessee television stations ran a different RNC ad.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Endorsements
Ford received endorsements from, among others, The Tennessean (Nashville's predominant daily newspaper), The Commercial Appeal (Memphis's predominant daily newspaper), the Jackson Sun (Jackson's predominant daily newspaper), the Bristol Herald Courier, Metro Pulse (Knoxville), the Professional Firefighters Association of Tennessee, and the Tennessee State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Endorsements
Corker was endorsed by, among others, the National Rifle Association, the Knoxville News-Sentinel, the United States Chamber of Commerce, Clarksville Leaf Chronicle, Lebanon Democrat, Kingsport Times News, Nashville City Paper, the National Federation of Independent Businesses, and the National Right to Life Committee, though the Tennessee Right to Life Committee has refused to endorse Corker, claiming he is a "pro-abortion" politician.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Endorsements
Both Corker and Ford were endorsed by the Chattanooga Times Free Press (Chattanooga's predominant daily newspaper still maintains two separate editorial pages left over from when its two daily newspapers merged): Ford by The Times editors, and Corker by Free Press editors.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Fundraising
Through October 18, 2006, Corker had raised more money than Ford and had also spent more, according to the candidates' most recent filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Corker tapped into his personal fortune to help fund his campaign, loaning his campaign a total of $4.1 million. Corker loaned $2 million of this amount on Wednesday, November 1, less than a week before the election, triggering the "millionaire's amendment" of the 2002 Campaign Reform Act and allowing Ford to seek $12,600 from individual donors instead of $2,100, the normal limit, for the final days of the campaign.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Fundraising
President Bush attended two fund raiser dinners on behalf of the Corker campaign in Nashville and Memphis which raised $2.6 million for Corker's campaign by charging over $2,000 a plate. Former President Bill Clinton attended a rally for the Ford campaign in Nashville that raised about $1 million.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Fundraising
None of the third party candidates filed reports with the FEC.


2006 United States Senate election in Tennessee, General election, Polling
In the general election, polls showed Corker with a statistically insignificant lead in the week before the election.


2006 United States Senate election in Texas
The 2006 United States Senate election in Texas was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison won re-election to a third full term.


2006 United States Senate election in Texas, General election, Campaign
The Democratic nominee had never run for public office and was expected to face an uphill battle in the general election, especially in a state that has not elected a Democrat statewide since 1994 and against a historically popular Hutchison. Since neither Radnofsky nor her main opponent, Gene Kelly, had received a majority of votes in the Democratic primary, a runoff was held April 11, 2006, which Radnofsky won. Radnofsky's campaign platform is available on her website. Scott Lanier Jameson won the Libertarian Party nomination at the party's state convention on June 10, 2006, defeating Timothy Wade and Ray Salinas. Arthur W. Loux, a Roman Forest City Councilman and a member of the Minutemen, was running as an independent.


2006 United States Senate election in Texas, General election, Campaign
Hutchison co-sponsored legislation supporting the creation of a constitutional amendment that would limit terms for senators, but had been quoted saying that she would only leave after two terms if such a law applied to all senators. After deciding not to challenge Governor Rick Perry this year, as had been widely speculated, Hutchison was running for a third term.


2006 United States Senate election in Texas, General election, Campaign
She had no opposition in the 2006 Republican primary, and had approval ratings in the 60 percent range going into the election, although they had been slipping rapidly.


2006 United States Senate election in Utah
The 2006 United States Senate election in Utah was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Orrin Hatch won re-election to a sixth term.


2006 United States Senate election in Utah, Major candidates
The filing deadline for major party candidates was March 17, 2006.


2006 United States Senate election in Utah, Results
Hatch won all but one county with 60% to 70% of the vote. Ashdown won only Summit County by 342 votes.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont
The 2006 United States Senate election in Vermont was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent independent Senator Jim Jeffords decided to retire rather than seek reelection to a fourth term, and Bernie Sanders was elected to succeed him.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont
Sanders represented Vermont's at-large House district as an independent, won the Democratic primary, and then dropped out to run as an independent. Many Democratic politicians across the country endorsed him, and no Democrat was on the ballot. The state committee of the Vermont Democratic Party voted unanimously to endorse Sanders.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont
Sanders won the seat with 65% of the vote. His win marked the first Republican loss for this seat in 152 years, ending the longest single-party Senate winning streak in history.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont, Democratic primary, Results
Sanders won the Democratic primary, but declined the nomination, leaving no Democratic nominee on the ballot. This victory ensured that no Democrat would appear on the general election ballot to split the vote with Sanders, an ally of the Democrats who had been supported by leaders in the Democratic Party.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont, General election, Campaign
In mid-August 2006, the campaign heated up considerably, with Tarrant fully engaged in heavy media advertising, most of which criticized Sanders's public stances. Tarrant ran several ads accusing Sanders of representing himself differently from his voting record in the House of Representatives, citing such examples as Sanders's votes against Amber Alert and against increased penalties for child pornography. Sanders responded with an ad stating that Tarrant's claims were "dishonest" and "distort my record", and presented what he viewed as more accurate explanations of his voting record. Tarrant also claimed that Sanders's election would lead to an exodus of businesses from the state. Sanders based his campaign on a well-tested message of fixing economic inequality, and ran a positive campaign that took advantage of his high name recognition in the state.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont, General election, Fund-raising
The election was the most expensive political campaign in Vermont history.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont, General election, Fund-raising
Tarrant was a self-funded candidate, with 98% of all his campaign expenditures coming from personal sources. He spent $7,315,854 total. Sanders' top contributors include the plaintiffs' law firm Baron & Budd; the International Union of Operating Engineers; the Laborers' International Union of North America; and the Communication Workers of America. Sanders raised $5,554,466 total. In total, Tarrant and Sanders spent $13,771,060. Tarrant spent $85 per vote, the largest cost per vote of any race in the country during 2006, while Sanders spent $34 per vote.


2006 United States Senate election in Vermont, General election, Results
Sanders won a majority of the votes in every county in the state, with 57% as his lowest county total. He has served as a U.S. Senator for Vermont since.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia
The 2006 United States Senate election in Virginia was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Senator George Allen ran for reelection to a second term but was narrowly defeated by Democrat Jim Webb, who earned 49.6% of the vote to Allen's 49.2%. With a margin of just 0.4%, this election was the closest race of the 2006 Senate election cycle. Webb declined to run for reelection in 2012.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, Background
Allen, who previously served as Governor of Virginia and was considered a possible candidate for president in 2008, was running for his second term. Webb, a decorated Vietnam War veteran, writer and former Secretary of the Navy under Ronald Reagan won the Democratic nomination after being drafted by netroots activists, such as those at the blog Raising Kaine. Polls clearly favored Allen through mid-August, but on August 11, he was filmed using the ethnic slur Macaca in reference to a Webb campaign volunteer, S.R. Sidarth, who is of Indian ancestry.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, Background
He also told Sidarth, "Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia," despite the fact that Sidarth had been born and raised in Fairfax County, and was a University of Virginia student at the time. Allen denied any prejudice in the comment, but the video was quickly spread online, and the gaffe caused his lead to shrink considerably. Still, he led in most polls until late October, when several surveys showed Webb with a lead — mostly within the margin of error. The election was not decided until nearly 48 hours after the polls closed, when Allen, behind by a margin of about 0.3%, conceded on November 9, 2006. With all of the other Senate races decided, the outcome swung control of the Senate to the Democrats.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, Democratic primary, Finances
Federal Election Commission reports show that in the first part of 2006, Miller raised more than twice as much money as Webb, who entered the race in February. (Miller contributed over $1 million to his own campaign, 60% of what he raised.)


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, Democratic primary, Campaign
The week before the primary, Miller said a Webb campaign flier characterized him in an anti-Semitic way; Webb denied that it did.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Controversies
This election involved several controversies involving both Webb and Allen, most notably the "macaca incident," which began Allen's decline in the polls and eventual loss.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Platform
Webb focused on his early and outspoken opposition to the war in Iraq, which Allen supported. In a September 4, 2002, opinion piece in The Washington Post, Webb wrote: "A long-term occupation of Iraq would beyond doubt require an adjustment of force levels elsewhere, and could eventually diminish American influence in other parts of the world." Webb's son, a U.S. Marine, served in Iraq.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Platform
Allen and Webb differed on other issues. Allen was opposed to abortion; Webb supported it. Allen supported George W. Bush's tax cuts while Webb said more of the benefits should have gone to middle-class Americans. Both candidates supported the death penalty, right-to-work laws, and Second Amendment rights.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Fundraising
Allen retained a substantial lead in fundraising: $6.6 million on hand to Webb's $1.1 million through September 15, 2006.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
On September 17, 2006, Allen and Webb appeared on NBC's Meet the Press for a debate. Part of the program's debate series on the midterm elections, the debate heavily discussed both the original Gulf War and the present war in Iraq. Host Tim Russert questioned Webb about his initial support for Allen's 2000 U.S. Senate run, as well as what led him to later oppose Allen. Russert also questioned Allen about a remark Webb made concerning his interactions with Allen at the start of the Iraq conflict.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
Webb asserted that he approached Allen regarding U.S. involvement in the region and cautioned against military action. Webb also claimed that Allen responded to this by saying "You're asking me to be disloyal to the president." After being questioned on this by Russert, Allen clarified by saying "No, it's loyalty to this country, and making sure that our country is unified in, in this, in this effort to disarm Saddam Hussein. That was the point." Allen also addressed what he saw as a weakness in Webb, claiming his opponent wanted to withdraw from Iraq. Webb clarified his belief that the U.S. has a commitment to ensure Iraq is stable before withdrawing, but also reasserted that a permanent U.S. presence in Iraq is not an option.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
The debate likewise covered an upcoming vote on the use of coercive interrogation methods on enemy combatants. Allen stated that he had not yet made a decision on how to vote, but stated "Now, the key in all of this is I don't want to stop these interrogations. I'm not for torture, I'm not for waterboarding, but some of these techniques have been very helpful to us, whether they are sleep deprivation, or whether there's loud music.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
And I need to be absolutely certain that what the interrogations — interrogators are doing now — which is completely fine as far as I'm concerned, protecting Americans — will not be harmed by the proposal." Webb expressed that this was an issue close to him as a former soldier, but also stated that he did not believe interrogations should be ended completely. Webb however reaffirmed his concerns that if the U.S. abandons the Geneva Convention its soldiers will suffer abroad.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
Russert questioned Webb on the recent allegations that his 1979 Washingtonian article fostered hostility towards female students at the Naval Academy. Webb responded as he had in prior press releases, expressing his regret for the repercussions of the article. Russert similarly asked Allen about a statement he made in 2000 in the pages of American Enterprise magazine: "If [Virginia Military Institute] admitted women, it wouldn't be the VMI that we've known for 154 years. You just don't treat women the way you treat fellow cadets. If you did, it would be ungentlemanly, it would be improper." Allen responded that VMI has made great progress in a co-ed curriculum, making women cadets more of a possibility than at the time he made the statement.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
On September 18, 2006, George Stephanopoulos moderated a debate between Allen and Webb, as part of his program This Week on ABC. Topics included national security, Iraq, the economy, the conduct of the campaign, and other issues.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Debates
On October 9, 2006, the League of Women Voters sponsored a debate between Allen and Webb. The format consisted of the candidates answering series of questions from the moderator, from the LWV panel, and finally from each other. Largely, the responses from the candidates did not expand on the body of knowledge already present in their television and radio commercials. The overall feel of the debate was somewhat combative, with Allen frequently going overtime on responses and a round of uncontrolled verbal jousting after Allen cited Webb's prior statements on raising taxes.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, By congressional district
Webb won 4 of 11 congressional districts, including the 10th and 11th districts, which elected Republicans to the House.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Analysis
Virginia had historically been one of the more Republican Southern states. For instance it was the only Southern state not to vote for Jimmy Carter in 1976. Prior to the 2006 election, its congressional delegation was mostly conservative, with eight of eleven Representatives and both Senators belonging to the Republican Party, making its Congressional delegation the most Republican of any Southern state. Despite this, Democrats had won the gubernatorial races in 2001 and 2005. The state's political majority has been changing from conservative white to a mixture of races, especially Hispanic.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Analysis
The state is increasingly diverse; it has the highest percentage of Asians (4.7%, according to the 2005 American Community Survey of the U.S. Census) of any Southern state. 9.9% of Virginians are foreign-born. Webb, like Governor Tim Kaine in 2005, won the four major fast-growing counties in Northern Virginia outside Washington, D.C.; Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William and Arlington. In 2008, President Barack Obama carried Virginia by a 6.3% margin over Republican Senator John McCain, while the Democratic nominee for Senate, Mark Warner, won the open seat, defeating Republican candidate Jim Gilmore by over 30 points.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Analysis
When results began coming in, Allen quickly built a sizeable lead, which began to narrow as the night went on. With 90% of precincts reporting, Allen held a lead of about 30,000 votes , or about 1.5%. However, as votes began to come in from population-heavy Richmond, Webb narrowed the gap, and pulled ahead within the last 1 or 2% of precincts to report. Preliminary results showed Webb holding a lead of 8,942 votes, and many news organizations hesitated to call the election for either candidate until the next day.


2006 United States Senate election in Virginia, General election, Analysis
At 8:41 PM EST on November 8, AP declared Webb the winner. Webb was the sixth Democrat to defeat an incumbent Republican Senator in 2006, and his victory gave Democrats control of the Senate. In all Virginia elections, if the margin of defeat is less than half of a percentage point, the Commonwealth of Virginia allows the apparent losing candidate to request a recount, paid for by the local jurisdictions. If the margin of defeat is between one and one-half of a percentage point, the losing candidate is still entitled to request a recount, but must cover its expense. Because the difference was less than 0.5%, George Allen could have requested a recount paid for by the government, but declined to make such a request. That was likely because:


2006 United States Senate election in Washington
The 2006 United States Senate election in Washington was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Maria Cantwell won re-election for a second term.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Background
The filing deadline was July 28, 2006, with the primary held September 19, 2006. Cantwell consistently led in polling throughout the race, although political analysts saw her as vulnerable this election cycle due to her extremely narrow win in 2000 and discontent among progressive voters. In November, the National Journal ranked Cantwell's seat as number 13 of the top 20 races to watch based on the likelihood of switching party control, and the third-highest Democratic seat likely to flip. However, in an election marked by discontent over the Republican leadership in D.C., Cantwell easily won by a 17% margin of victory.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Background
Statewide politics in Washington have been dominated by the Democratic Party for many years. The governor, lieutenant governor, treasurer, state auditor, and insurance commissioner are Democrats, while only secretary of state, attorney general, and commissioner of public lands are Republican. Of the nine representatives Washington sends to the House of Representatives, six are Democrats. Democrat Patty Murray is the state's senior senator. Cantwell won her initial election to the Senate in 2000 over Slade Gorton by 2,229 votes. Due to the closeness of that race, and the close gubernatorial contest between Democrat Christine Gregoire and Republican Dino Rossi in November 2004, many Republicans believed they had a strong chance of capturing Cantwell's seat in 2006.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On March 9, 2006, Aaron Dixon announced his decision to seek the Green Party's nomination for U.S. Senate, challenging Cantwell on her continued support for the U.S. presence in Iraq and the USA PATRIOT Act. On May 13, 2006, Dixon secured the party's nomination at the Green Party of Washington state's Spring Convention.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
Initially, Cantwell had two challengers from within the Democratic primary, both of them taking strong stances against the Iraq war that brought attention to Cantwell's votes for the Iraq Resolution and against a timeline for withdrawal:  Mark Wilson and Hong Tran. Three other Democrats also entered the primary race: Mike the Mover, Michael Goodspaceguy Nelson, and Mohammad H. Said.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On August 8, 2006, the incumbent Democratic Senator from Connecticut, Joe Lieberman, lost his primary race to challenger Ned Lamont by 52%-48%, and appears to be following through on his earlier commitment to run as an Independent in the general election. A great deal of attention has focused on this race, as an early barometer of both anti-incumbent and anti-war sentiment nationwide. Comparisons have been made between Lieberman's troubles and Cantwell's re-election bid, citing Cantwell's vote in favor of the Iraq Resolution that led to the war, her refusal to say she regretted the vote, and her vote against a timetable for withdrawal.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
Unlike Lamont's campaign, Cantwell's anti-war opponents' campaigns have received much less funding and have not had the same support from the blogosphere that brought Lamont to prominence and improved his name recognition. Also, unlike Lieberman, Cantwell has altered her position on the war during her campaign and criticized the Bush Administration for its conduct of the war. She also hired her most vocal anti-war primary opponent, Mark Wilson, at $8,000-a-month salary, a move that was described by political commentators as "buying out" the opposition (which she also allegedly attempted with other anti-war challengers Hong Tran and Aaron Dixon).


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
The article does, however, note that, despite the differences in exact circumstances, the Lieberman defeat also shows that voters are in an anti-incumbent mood, which could create problems for Cantwell. This is supported by another P-I article that also notes that the primary loss of Lieberman and two House incumbents, Michigan Republican Joe Schwarz and Georgia Democrat Cynthia McKinney, on the same day indicates that there may be a nationwide anti-incumbent trend.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
Following the primary results, Cantwell endorsed Ned Lamont and McGavick responded by endorsing Senator Lieberman. The Dixon campaign released a statement criticizing Cantwell's "spin and vague rhetoric" on the war, and equating her current position to a pro-war stance similar to Lieberman's.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On August 14, less than a week after Lamont's win and nearly four years after the actual event, Cantwell for the first time said she would have voted against the authorization to use force in Iraq if she knew then what she knows today. However, she did so only after hearing her opponent McGavick say that he would have voted against the authorization under those conditions. Cantwell has stated that she had no regrets for her vote in favor of the authorization and has not changed that position.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On July 9, anti-war challenger Mark Wilson announced he would abandon his bid, endorse Cantwell, and take a paid position offered by Cantwell's campaign, one day after progressive activist and anti-war critic Dal LaMagna had been hired to be the Cantwell campaign's co-chair. Initially, Cantwell's campaign refused to state how much they were paying Wilson, but under pressure from the media, disclosed that he was receiving $8,000 per month, only slightly less than Cantwell's campaign manager Matt Butler, who earns $8,731 per month.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
The next day, Hong Tran received a call from LaMagna saying they would like her to join their campaign, in a context that she interpreted as a job offer, which she refused. Political commentators, including those at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and one at The Washington Times, expressed their views that Cantwell was attempting to eliminate the viable options anti-war Democrats had to voice their opinion on the war in the upcoming primary by having Wilson join her campaign and then soliciting Tran.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
Wilson's supporters and journalists expressed surprise at his withdrawal from the race after a 16-month campaign, where he was a sharp critic of the incumbent Senator, who he referred to on his campaign website as a "free-trading corporate elitist" who "bought her seat", then "alienated and alarmed" her base. When asked by reporters if he still believed what he said about Cantwell during his primary bid, he stated: "I believed in it to a point in order to capitalize on what was already existent, which was a rift within the Democratic Party over the issue of the war." Both Dixon and Tran have publicly doubted that Wilson's apparent change of heart was genuine, citing his paid position with the campaign and his initial refusal to disclose his salary.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On September 25, Joshua Frank reported that Dixon was alleging that he had been contacted twice in July by Mark Wilson, who implied that large donations to Dixon's non-profit organization, Central House, would be made if he were to withdraw his candidacy before filing. Dixon also claimed that Wilson was not the only Cantwell staffer to contact him, but declined to disclose who the other staff was. Dixon also made this claim on a Democracy Now! broadcast.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
David Postman of the Seattle Times contacted the Cantwell campaign about the allegations; their spokesperson didn't say it didn't happen, but stated that no one on the campaign had authorized to speak to Dixon about his campaign. The campaign did not allow access to Wilson so he could respond as to whether the conversation took place.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
Other reporters also have had trouble contacting Wilson in recent weeks; Susan Paynter of the Seattle P-I, in an article on his shunning of the media, noted that there had been a widespread assumption after Wilson's hire that the intent was to silence him and that his disappearance only reinforced this assumption, calling it "the political equivalent of a farm subsidy." Paynter also quoted Hong Tran as saying that the reaction to Wilson's initial appearances on the campaign trail after he had joined Cantwell were so negative that she was not surprised he disappeared.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
While some of Washington's legislative districts did not give endorsements for the primary election, Cantwell received the sole endorsement of at least fourteen of the forty-nine legislative districts in the state. Hong Tran won the sole endorsement of one district, the 32nd (Cantwell's home district), and split dual endorsements with Cantwell in three others: the 40th, 25th, and 26th. Tran attended the endorsement meeting for the 32nd Legislative District in person and, according to one blogger who claims to have spoken to people who attended the meeting, made her positions clear and responded to questions. According to the blogger, Cantwell sent Mark Wilson in her stead, who was unable to defend Cantwell's votes in favor of the USA PATRIOT Act, NAFTA, CAFTA, and the Iraq War.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Democratic primary, Campaign
On September 19, after her defeat in the Democratic primary, Hong Tran lamented to the Seattle Times of "how undemocratic the Democratic Party really is" saying the state Democratic party had tried to keep her from getting attention, forbidding her from putting up signs at Coordinated Campaign events and not giving her access to the state party voter rolls. Cantwell, whose campaign hired two of her early critics, had also refused to debate Tran. When asked before the primary whether she would endorse the senator if her primary bid proved unsuccessful, Tran had responded, "certainly not."


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Republican primary, Background
In early hypothetical matchups in 2005 compiled by conservative pollster Strategic Vision, Rossi led Cantwell. Republican leadership reportedly pleaded with Rossi to jump into the ring. Rossi declined.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, Republican primary, Background
Speculation next centered on Rick White (who had taken Cantwell's House seat in 1994), state GOP chair Chris Vance, former Seattle television reporter Susan Hutchinson, and former 8th district Congressional candidate and Republican National Committee member Diane Tebelius. None of those chose to enter the race. Republican leaders finally got behind former Safeco Insurance CEO Mike McGavick.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Debates
McGavick and Cantwell participated in two televised debates; one in Eastern Washington, sponsored by the Spokane Rotary, and another filmed at KING-5 studios in Seattle. Cantwell and McGavick were the only candidates included in the Eastern Washington debate, but Libertarian Bruce Guthrie, who had mortgaged his home and emptied his savings to loan his campaign $1.2 million to meet the debate's invitation requirements, joined them in the Seattle debate.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Debates
After failing to meet any of the requirements for an invitation to the Seattle debate, Aaron Dixon attempted to enter the KING-5 studios in order to participate in the debate. Accompanied by around 50 of his supporters, Dixon was prevented from entering the studios by station security and when Dixon refused to leave the building Seattle police were called and Dixon was arrested for investigation of trespassing.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Debates
According to the Seattle P-I, Bruce Guthrie won the Seattle debate just by being there. McGavick and Cantwell mainly stuck to their tried and true campaign messages and Guthrie was able to expose his campaign messages to a wide audience, something most third-party candidates are not able to do.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Iraq War
According to a CBS News poll conducted August 11–13, 28% of Americans feel that the Iraq War as the most important problem facing the country. A November 6 poll conducted by Strategic Vision indicated that 68% of Washingtonians approve of an "immediate withdrawal of United States military forces from Iraq, within six months".


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Iraq War
Both McGavick and Cantwell have said that if they knew then what they know now they would have voted against the October 2002 Iraq Resolution, but neither have been completely clear on where they stand on the current presence of US troops in Iraq. When questioned further, McGavick has said that discussing the legitimacy of the war is inappropriate until all the troops come home. Cantwell has declined to apologize for her vote in favor of the resolution and, according to her campaign site, Cantwell still favors U.S. forces remaining in Iraq until they "achieve stability through greater international cooperation".


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Iraq War
Cantwell has voted in favor of beginning withdrawal of troops, albeit a non-binding amendment with no timetable for completion (the Levin-Reed Amendment to S.2766), but voted against the Kerry-Feingold Amendment, which would have set a firm deadline of July 2007 for completing a withdrawal. She also co-sponsored an amendment to prohibiting the establishment of permanent US bases in Iraq.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Iraq War
On August 16, the Seattle Times criticized the vagueness of the major party candidates' positions on the war and demanded more clarity. The next day, Stuart Elway, director of The Elway Poll, described Cantwell's and McGavick's positions as "almost identical,".


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Iraq War
Democratic primary challenger Tran, the Green Party's Dixon and Libertarian Guthrie all advocated an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Minimum wage
Despite voting against a bill that would have raised the minimum wage, extended sales tax deductions, and cut estate taxes, Cantwell supports an increase in the federal minimum wage. She explained her vote against the bill by noting that the bill would have represented a $5 per hour wage drop for over 120,000 tip workers in Washington and overridden existing state minimum wage laws and was an attempt by the Republican party to pass its estate tax cut bill, which continuously failed to pass on its own in the senate.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Minimum wage
Democratic challenger Tran and the Green Party's Dixon favored raising the national minimum wage to a "living wage". Libertarian Guthrie advocated eliminating the minimum wage laws altogether.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Millionaire Amendment
On August 11, Mike McGavick loaned his campaign $2 million. Some observers thought that the donation could trigger "millionaire's amendment" of the 2002 Campaign Reform Act which is intended to help candidates compete against wealthy opponents that self-finance their campaigns. The amendment allows supporters of the wealthy candidate's opponents to donate up to $12,600 in the primary and another $12,600 in the general election instead of $2,100 in the primary and general election. The McGavick campaign denied the amendment applies to Cantwell as the loan was made prior to the primary election and would only affect his Republican opponents.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Millionaire Amendment
On August 29, the FEC issued a unanimous ruling on the question, saying that the millionaire's amendment was currently only triggered for McGavick's opponents in the primary; however, if either McGavick or Cantwell carry over some of their donations to their own campaign that were made in the primary into the general election, these donations would then trigger the Amendment.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Platform, Millionaire Amendment
On October 1, Libertarian nominee Bruce Guthrie loaned his campaign nearly $1.2 million, but it is unclear if the loan triggers the amendment for McGavick and Cantwell. Both Cantwell and McGavick have a significant fund raising lead over Guthrie and the amendment might not be triggered in cases where the self-financed candidate is already out funded by their opponents. Guthrie apparently made the loan in order to get himself invited to a televised debate on a western Washington television station and he eventually repaid himself all but $6,000 of the loan.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, McGavick's DUI arrest
The McGavick campaign suffered a setback when on August 24 McGavick claimed on his campaign blog to have been cited in 1993 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol when he blew a 0.17 in a breath analyzer test, well above the .10 legal limit in Montgomery County, Maryland.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, McGavick's DUI arrest
However, on September 1, the Everett Herald newspaper uncovered the original police report and disclosed that there was several inaccuracies in McGavick's recount, namely that he actually charged with running a "steady red light", not "cutting a yellow a little close" and he was actually arrested for the DUI, not merely cited. The DUI charge was later removed from McGavick's record, in accordance with Maryland law, after completing an alcohol awareness program, paying a fine, and a year's probation. According to Jennifer Duffy of The Cook Political Report, McGavick's undermined the rationale of his campaign that he was not acting like a typical politician and his omissions caused cynical voters to think he acted like a typical politician.


2006 United States Senate election in Washington, General election, Results
Cantwell was projected to be the winner right when the polls closed at 11:00 P.M. EST Time.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia
The 2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Robert Byrd won re-election to a ninth term. He was sworn in on January 4, 2007. However, he died in office on June 28, 2010, before the end of his term. This was Robert Byrd's closest re-election.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
Before the 2000 presidential election, West Virginia had been won by the Democratic nominee every time since 1932 (except for the Republican landslides of 1956, 1972, and 1984). In 2000, then Republican Governor George W. Bush of Texas won West Virginia’s five electoral college votes over then Vice President Al Gore of Tennessee by a margin of 52–46. Also in the 2000 election, Republican Shelley Moore Capito, the daughter of Former West Virginia Governor Arch A. Moore, Jr., won a surprise victory over Democrat Jim Humphreys for West Virginia's 2nd Congressional District seat to the United States House of Representatives.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
She would become the first Republican in West Virginia to hold a Congressional office for more than one term since her father in 1969. Before these two major victories for national and West Virginia Republicans, it was difficult to find a Republican who could mount a formidable campaign against Democrats running for public office in West Virginia.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
President Bush won West Virginia again in the 2004 presidential election over John F. Kerry, the Democratic junior Senator from Massachusetts by a margin of 56–43. Both Representative Alan Mollohan (D-1st District) and Representative Nick Rahall (D-3rd District) had more formidable challenges from Republicans when compared to 2000 and 2002. Republican Brent Benjamin defeated Democratic incumbent West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Justice Warren McGraw, and Republican Betty Ireland defeated liberal-Democrat Ken Hechler, a former congressman and secretary of state, for West Virginia Secretary of State.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
Since 2000, the Republicans have gained seven net seats in both the West Virginia Senate and the West Virginia House of Delegates. However, the Democrats hold 60% of the seats in the Senate and 68% of the seats in the House.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
Along with continued majorities in the legislature, Democrats have also had some other victories. Even though both Bush and Capito won their respective offices in 2000, Senator Byrd sailed to an eighth term with 78% of the vote over Republican David Gallaher. Senator John D. Rockefeller, IV, easily won a fourth term to the Senate in 2002 by a margin of 63–37 over Republican Jay Wolfe. In 2000, 2002, and 2004, both Representative Mollohan and Representative Rahall were re-elected by much stronger margins than Capito. In 2004, Republican Monty Warner failed to defeat Democratic West Virginia Secretary of State Joe Manchin for governor.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Background
After the Republicans failed to win the governor’s race, West Virginia Republican Committee Chairman Kris Warner, the brother of Monty, was put under pressure to resign his post; he did so in May 2005. Wheeling attorney Rob Capehart took his place. (Dr. Doug McKinney of Bridgeport now holds the post.) Another brother of Monty, Kasey, who was appointed by President Bush in 2001, was removed as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia on August 1, 2005. No explanation has been given for his departure and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles T. Miller currently represents the district.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Democratic primary, Candidates
Two Democrats filed for the primary on May 9, 2006:


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
Shelley Moore Capito: Both state and national Republicans chose Capito as their first choice to challenge Byrd. Early polling showed Byrd with only around a ten-point lead. Capito had even met with National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairwoman Elizabeth Dole, whose husband, Robert Dole, served alongside Byrd as majority and minority leader in the Senate, to discuss a possible run. Despite party leaders pushing for her to run, on October 3, 2005, Capito announced she would seek a fourth term for her congressional seat rather than run against Byrd.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
She cited the negativity of a possible Byrd-Capito race as a reason for not running. Other reasons for Capito not running include the following: Capito's seat is widely considered safe; Capito is rising in House leadership; if Capito ran against Byrd, her seat could possibly have fallen back into the Democratic column; and Capito's large amount of contributions from former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay could be brought into question.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
Betty Ireland: After Capito decided not to run, Republicans hoped to recruit Secretary of State Ireland, the first woman elected to the executive branch of West Virginia. On October 27, 2005, however, Ireland announced she would not run against the eight-term senator. She said that the office of Secretary of State should not be used as a political stepping stone. Ironically, Joe Manchin held the office of Secretary of State during his campaign for governor.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
Gale Catlett: Conservative columnist Robert Novak wrote in a September 24, 2005, article that Gale Catlett's, the former Head Coach of the West Virginia University Men's Basketball team, name had been floated around as a possible challenger to Byrd. Catlett had in fact talked to West Virginia Republican Committee Chairman Capehart about either running against Byrd or possibly Representative Mollohan. It was also reported that if Capito had run against Byrd, Catlett would seek her seat. However, on November 11, 2005, Catlett decided not to run against Senator Byrd or Representative Mollohan. (A side note: On November 12, 2005, Ohio County Delegate Chris Wakim (R) announced his intentions to run against Representative Mollohan.)


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
Capehart: Also mentioned as a possible challenger was Chairman Capehart. Capehart told West Virginia Media Holding’s State Journal on December 5, 2005, that he would not seek the seat. He said that he would remain as chairman to accomplish his main goal: To completely erase the party's $200,000 debt which was left over after the 2004 election cycle.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Recruiting
John Raese: On January 11, 2006, TheHill.com reported that NRSC Chairwoman Dole met with 1984 Republican United States Senate candidate and 1988 Republican Gubernatorial primary-candidate Raese to discuss a possible run for the nomination in May. Raese did file for the primary by the deadline of January 28, 2006.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, Republican primary, Candidates
Six Republicans filed for the primary on May 9, 2006:


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, General election, Candidates
Three candidates appeared on the ballot for the general election on November 7, 2006:


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, General election, Campaign
Byrd was extremely popular as he had approval ratings in the low 60% range. Raese, a millionaire, self-financed his campaign. He spent campaign ads on attacking Byrd.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, General election, Analysis
Byrd defeated Raese and Johnson 64-34-2. Representative Mollohan defeated Delegate Wakim 64–36. Representative Capito defeated former West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Mike Callaghan 57–43. Representative Rahall defeated Cabell County Sheriff Kim Wolfe 69–31.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, General election, Analysis
Even though there was a two million dollar ad campaign by Massey Energy's CEO Don Blankenship against West Virginia House of Delegates and Senate Democrats, Democrats gained a net four seats in the House and two seats in the Senate. This resulted in a 72-28 Democrat advantage in the House and a 23-11 Democrat advantage in the Senate.


2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia, General election, Analysis
With the 2007 Democratic takeover of the United States Senate, Senator Byrd became the President pro tempore of the Senate (the third person in the presidential line of succession) as well as the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.


2006 United States Senate election in Wisconsin
The 2006 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Herb Kohl won re-election to his fourth and final term in a landslide.


2006 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, General election, Analysis
Kohl won every county in the state. Kohl's weakest performance in the state was suburban Washington County, Wisconsin, which Kohl won with just 49.6%. Kohl's strongest performance was in rural Menominee County, where he won with over 90% of the vote. Vogeler's best performance was in Dane County, where she came in third place with over 5%, a county where Lorge had his second weakest performance.


2006 United States Senate election in Wyoming
The 2006 United States Senate election in Wyoming was held November 7, 2006. The primaries were on August 22, 2006, in which both candidates were unopposed. Incumbent Republican Craig Thomas won re-election to a third term. Thomas died 5 months into his term on June 4, 2007 after battling leukemia.


2006 United States Senate election in Wyoming, General election, Campaign
Thomas was a very popular two term incumbent, having a 68% approval rating. Despite doing very well in the polls, Thomas agreed to a debate. An October debate was sponsored by the Casper Star-Tribune and KCWY in Casper. Thomas said the nation has made progress in its energy policy, while Groutage said the nation's energy policy has failed because Congress has done more for special interests than the people.


2006 United States Senate election in Wyoming, General election, Results
Thomas won at least 56% of the vote in every county in Wyoming.


2006 United States Senate elections
The 2006 United States Senate elections were held on November 7, 2006, with all 33 Class 1 Senate seats being contested. The term of office for those elected in 2006 ran from January 3, 2007, to January 3, 2013. Prior to the election, the Republican Party controlled 55 of the 100 Senate seats.


2006 United States Senate elections
The Senate elections were part of the Democratic sweep during the 2006 elections, in which Democrats made numerous gains and no congressional or gubernatorial seat held by a Democrat was won by a Republican. However, Democratic incumbent Joe Lieberman in Connecticut was defeated in the primary and was later reelected as a third party candidate; he continued to caucus with the Democrats. Because of this, this is the first time since 1970 in which a member of a third party, who is not an independent, was elected to the Senate.


2006 United States Senate elections
Independent Jim Jeffords in Vermont retired but was succeeded by another Independent, Bernie Sanders, retaining their presence in the Senate. Jeffords and Sanders both caucused with Democrats. Democrats picked up six seats, all via the defeats of incumbents, in Missouri, Montana, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Virginia; while holding open seats in Maryland and Minnesota. Republicans held their sole open seat in Tennessee.


2006 United States Senate elections
Following the elections, no party held a majority of seats for the first time since January 1955. The Democrats were able to control the chamber because the two Independents caucused with the Democrats. They needed at least 51 seats to control the Senate because Vice President Dick Cheney would have broken any 50–50 tie in favor of the Republicans. This was the first time since 2000 where the Democrats effectively won control of the Senate as a result of direct elections.


2006 United States Senate elections
As of 2021, this is the last time Democrats won a Senate election in Nebraska and the last time they did not win a seat in Connecticut.


2006 United States Senate elections, Results summary
Summary of the November 7, 2006, United States Senate election results


2006 United States Senate elections, Holds
Democrats kept their two open seats in Minnesota and Maryland, and Republicans held onto their lone open seat in Tennessee.


2006 United States Senate elections, Holds
Independent Bernie Sanders was elected to the open seat in Vermont to replace Independent incumbent Jim Jeffords, who retired. In the Senate, Sanders caucused with the Democrats, as Jeffords had done.


2006 United States Senate elections, Holds
In Connecticut, incumbent Joe Lieberman lost his Democratic primary, but won re-election under an ad hoc new party, "Connecticut for Lieberman." After winning reelection, Lieberman continued to caucus with the Democrats, but did not officially consider himself a member of the party.


2006 United States Senate elections, Ratings
The following table rates the competitiveness of every race. Incumbents with parentheses around their names did not run for reelection.


2006 United States Senate elections, Race summary, Elections leading to the next Congress
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning January 3, 2007; ordered by state.


2006 United States Senate elections, Closest races
In eight races the margin of victory was under 10%.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
Incumbent Republican Jon Kyl won re-election to a third term over Democrat Jim Pederson, real estate developer and former Chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
The incumbent, Republican Jon Kyl, was elected to the Senate in 1994 and was re-elected to a second term in 2000; having previously spent eight years in the U.S. House of Representatives. Kyl's Democratic opponent for the general election was wealthy real-estate developer Jim Pederson, who served as the Arizona Democratic Party Chairman from 2001 to 2005. During his tenure, Pederson spent millions of dollars of his own money to help Democrats modernize and to elect Janet Napolitano as Governor of Arizona. The deadline for signing petition signatures to appear on the September 12, 2006 primary ballot was June 14, 2006.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
Not long after the 2004 election, Pederson's name began being mentioned as a potential Senate candidate for the 2006 race. On July 28, 2005, Pederson formally stepped down as Chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party, further fueling those speculations. In early September 2005, an e-mail was sent from the Arizona Democratic Party's website, inviting people to an announcement by Pederson on September 7. In an anticlimactic move, an e-mail was sent out shortly after the first saying that the announcement would be postponed due to Hurricane Katrina.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
It was requested that any money that would be donated to Pederson's campaign at the announcement be directed to relief efforts instead. Similarly, a meeting in Arizona of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) was scheduled for around the same time. It was also postponed and the same request was made involving donations. On September 7, 2005, Pederson filed to run for the U.S. Senate. On September 14, 2005, Pederson formally announced his intention to run, in his hometown of Casa Grande, Arizona.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
Although Kyl started the campaign with a sizable lead in most polls, the gap quickly narrowed, especially after Pederson released his array of ads.


2006 United States Senate elections, Arizona
Pederson lost the election by 9.84% or 150,257 votes, despite Democratic Incumbent Governor Janet Napolitano easily being re-elected and winning every county statewide. While Pederson lost it was still notable, as it was the worst performance of Senator Kyl's career. Kyl did well as Republicans usually do in Maricopa County home of Phoenix. Pederson did well in Pima County home of Tucson which tends to support Democrats. Kyl was called the winner by CNN at around 8 P.M. local time, 11 P.M. EST. Pederson called Senator Kyl and conceded defeat at 9:02 P.M. local time, 12:02 P.M. EST.


2006 United States Senate elections, California
Incumbent Democrat Dianne Feinstein won re-election to her third full term.


2006 United States Senate elections, California
Feinstein stood against Republican Dick Mountjoy, who had never held a statewide elected position, but had been a state senator for several years. Also running was Libertarian Michael Metti, Don Grundmann of the American Independent Party, Todd Chretien of the Green Party and Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party.


2006 United States Senate elections, California
Because California is a state that requires a large amount of money to wage a competitive statewide campaign, it is not unusual - as was the case for this race - for a popular incumbent to have no significant opponent. Several prominent Republicans, such as Bill Jones, Matt Fong, and others, declined to run, and a previous announced challenger, businessman Bill Mundell, withdrew his declaration after determining he would not be a self-funded candidate (like Michael Huffington was in the 1994 election).


2006 United States Senate elections, California
On September 22, the Los Angeles Times reported that Mountjoy's official biography, as found on his campaign website, falsely asserted that he had served aboard the battleship USS Missouri during the Korean War—he'd actually served aboard the heavy cruiser USS Bremerton. A review of the ships' logs corroborated this and the website was quickly changed to reflect his service aboard the Bremerton rather than the Missouri. Mountjoy denied having been responsible for adding the incorrect information


2006 United States Senate elections, California
Feinstein won the election easily. Feinstein won almost every major urban area, winning in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, and San Diego. Feinstein was projected the winner as the polls closed at 11 P.M. EST.


2006 United States Senate elections, Connecticut
Incumbent Democrat Joe Lieberman lost the August 8 Democratic primary to cable executive Ned Lamont, a former Greenwich selectman. Lieberman formed his own third party and won in the general election to a fourth term.


2006 United States Senate elections, Connecticut
Because Connecticut was believed to be a Democratic stronghold, Connecticut's Senate seat was considered safe to remain as a Democratic seat by political analysts, but Lieberman's continued support for conservative and Bush administration policies made him vulnerable to a Democratic primary challenger.