2006 Illinois gubernatorial election#Aftermath
{{Short description|none}}
{{for|related races|2006 United States gubernatorial elections}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name = 2006 Illinois gubernatorial election
| country = Illinois
| type = presidential
| ongoing = no
| previous_election = 2002 Illinois gubernatorial election
| previous_year = 2002
| next_election = 2010 Illinois gubernatorial election
| next_year = 2010
| election_date = November 7, 2006
| image1 = File:Rod Blagojevich (2911120436) 3x4.jpg
| image_size = 150x150px
| nominee1 = Rod Blagojevich
| running_mate1 = Pat Quinn
| party1 = Democratic Party (United States)
| popular_vote1 = 1,736,731
| percentage1 = 49.79%
| image2 = File:Judy Baar Topinka (cropped).jpg
| nominee2 = {{nowrap|Judy Baar Topinka}}
| running_mate2 = Joe Birkett
| party2 = Republican Party (United States)
| popular_vote2 = 1,369,315
| percentage2 = 39.26%
| image3 = File:Rich Whitney (cropped).jpg
| nominee3 = Rich Whitney
| running_mate3 = Julie Samuels
| party3 = Green Party of the United States
| popular_vote3 = 361,336
| percentage3 = 10.36%
| map_image = 160px
| map_size = 160px
| map_caption = County results
Blagojevich: {{legend0|#bdd3ff|30–40%}} {{legend0|#a5b0ff|40–50%}} {{legend0|#7996e2|50–60%}} {{legend0|#6674de|60–70%}}
Topinka: {{legend0|#ffc8cd|30–40%}} {{legend0|#ffb2b2|40–50%}} {{legend0|#e27f7f|50–60%}} {{legend0|#d75d5d|60–70%}} {{legend0|#d72f30|70–80%}}
| title = Governor
| before_election = Rod Blagojevich
| before_party = Democratic Party (United States)
| after_election = Rod Blagojevich
| after_party = Democratic Party (United States)
| turnout = 47.29% {{decrease}} 2.76 pp
}}
{{ElectionsIL}}
The 2006 Illinois gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich won re-election to a second four-year term scheduled to have ended on January 10, 2011. However, Blagojevich did not complete his term, as he was impeached and removed from office in 2009. This was the first election since 1964 that a Democrat was re-elected governor.
Many observers expected the race to be close, especially considering the polling,{{cite web|url=http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReport.aspx?g=8eca95c7-104b-43c0-8ca5-20048b49913a |title=SurveyUSA News Poll #8260 |publisher=Surveyusa.com |access-date=2015-03-30}} which had shown Governor Blagojevich to have a high disapproval rating. However, the Republicans had fared poorly due to scandals involving prior Governor George Ryan, and the increasingly unpopular presidency of George W. Bush. Exit polls showed Topinka won white voters (46%-41%-13%), while Blagojevich performed well among African Americans (80%-16%-2%) and Latinos (83%-12%-4%). Democrats won Will County for the first time since 1964, and Lake County for the first time since 1960.
This was the second and last time in Illinois that a woman was a major party's nominee for governor, the other being 1994. This was also the last time a male lieutenant governor was on the winning ticket.
Background
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for Congress and those for other state offices. The election was part of the 2006 Illinois elections.
{{See also|2006 Illinois elections#Turnout}}
For the primaries, turnout for the gubernatorial primaries was 23.13%, with 1,680,207 votes cast and turnout for the lieutenant gubernatorial primaries was 20.60% with 1,496,453 votes cast.{{cite web |title=Voter Turnout |url=https://www.elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/VoterTurnout.aspx |website=www.elections.il.gov |publisher=Illinois State Board of Elections |access-date=24 March 2020 |archive-date=30 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210530142655/https://www.elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/VoterTurnout.aspx |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |title=Election Results |url=https://www.elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/ElectionVoteTotals.aspx |website=www.elections.il.gov |publisher=Illinois State Board of Elections |access-date=23 March 2020 |archive-date=22 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222093629/https://www.elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/ElectionVoteTotals.aspx |url-status=dead }} For the general election, turnout was 47.29%, with 3,487,989 votes cast.
Democratic primary
=Governor=
==Candidates==
- Rod Blagojevich, incumbent governor of Illinois
- Edwin Eisendrath, former Chicago Alderman and former HUD official
==Results==
[[File:Illinois Governor D Primary 2006.svg|thumb|160px|County results {{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#7996E2|Blagojevich}}
|{{legend|#7996E2|50–60%}}
|{{legend|#6674DE|60–70%}}
|{{legend|#584CDE|70–80%}}
|{{legend|#3933E5|80–90%}}
}}
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#5bc75bff|Eisendrath}}
|{{legend|#5bc75bff|50–60%}}
|{{legend|#41b742ff|60–70%}}
}}
]]
{{Election box begin no change
| title = Democratic gubernatorial primary results
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Rod Blagojevich (incumbent)
| party = Democratic Party (United States)
| votes = 669,006
| percentage = 70.84
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Edwin Eisendrath
| party = Democratic Party (United States)
| votes = 275,375
| percentage = 29.16
}}
{{Election box total no change
| votes = 944,397
| percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box end}}
=Lieutenant governor=
==Candidates==
- Pat Quinn, incumbent lieutenant governor of Illinois
- Pamela R. Schadow
==Results==
{{Election box begin no change
| title = Democratic lieutenant gubernatorial primary results
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Pat Quinn (incumbent)
| party = Democratic Party (United States)
| votes = 819,005
| percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Pamela R. Schadow
| party = Democratic Party (United States)
| votes = 17
| percentage = 0.00
}}
{{Election box total no change
| votes = 819,022
| percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box end}}
Republican primary
=Governor=
==Candidates==
- Bill Brady, Illinois State Senator
- Ron Gidwitz, businessman and former chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education
- Andy Martin, perennial candidate
- Jim Oberweis, owner of Oberweis Dairy
- Judy Baar Topinka, Illinois State Treasurer
==Declined==
==Campaign==
On November 7, 2005, Topinka announced that she would not seek re-election as state treasurer — instead, she entered the gubernatorial primary, hoping to challenge Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Republican primary was deeply divisive; her tenure as Party Chairman destroyed her support from the conservative wing of her party, and it was feared that her pro-choice and positive gay rights positions would be detrimental to her standing with the same conservatives. In December she announced that she would join forces with DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett as a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Illinois.
In February 2006, the candidates for the Republican nomination for Illinois Governor began running their first TV ads for the March statewide primary election. Rival candidate Ron Gidwitz's advertisements, attacking Topinka, were rebuked in the same week by the Illinois Republican Party: "In an unprecedented action, the Illinois Republican Party has officially rebuked the Gidwitz campaign for this ad because the Party found that the ad violates the Party's "Code of Conduct", which was enacted to police proper conduct among Republican candidates."
Later in February, candidate Jim Oberweis, another rival for the Republican Gubernatorial nomination, started a series of attack ads for television markets, against Topinka, that were even more widely criticized, mostly for using "fake" headlines on the images of actual Illinois newspapers.{{Ref|Tribune}}{{Ref|FactCheck}} These ads, like Gidwitz's ads, also came under review by the Illinois Republican Party.{{Ref|SLPD}} Because of the controversy generated, several television stations withdrew Oberweis's ads.{{Ref|DH}}
==Results==
[[File:2006 Illinois gubernatorial Republican primary results map by county.svg|160px|thumb|County results
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#e27f7f|Baar Topinka}}|{{legend|#ffc8cd|30–40%}}|{{legend|#ffb2b2|40–50%}}|{{legend|#e27f7f|50–60%}}|{{legend|#d75d5d|60–70%}}}}
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#5bc75b|Oberweis}}|{{legend|#aae5aa|30–40%}}|{{legend|#87de87|40–50%}}|{{legend|#5bc75b|50–60%}}|{{legend|#41b742|60–70%}}}}
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#ff7644|Brady}}|{{legend|#ffac8e|30–40%}}|{{legend|#ff8e65|40–50%}}|{{legend|#ff7644|50–60%}}|{{legend|#dc6134|60-70%}}}}
]]
{{Election box begin no change
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Judy Baar Topinka
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 280,701
| percentage = 38.15
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Jim Oberweis
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 233,576
| percentage = 31.74
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Bill Brady
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 135,370
| percentage = 18.40
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Ron Gidwitz
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 80,068
| percentage = 10.88
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Andy Martin
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 6,095
| percentage = 0.83
}}
{{Election box total no change
| votes = 735,810
| percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box end}}
=Lieutenant governor=
==Candidates==
- Joe Birkett, DuPage County State's Attorney
- Lawrence Bruckner, lawyer
- Jeremy Bryan Cole
- Steve Rauschenberger, member of the Illinois Senate
- Sandy Wegman, Kane County Recorder{{cite web |title=Prosecutor removes office from case |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2006-01-21-0601210243-story.html |website=chicagotribune.com |publisher=Chicago Tribune |access-date=24 March 2020 |date=21 January 2006}}
==Results==
[[File:2006 Illinois lieutenant gubernatorial Republican primary results map by county.svg|thumb|160px|County results
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#e27f7f|Birkett}}|{{legend|#ffc8cd|30–40%}}|{{legend|#ffb2b2|40–50%}}|{{legend|#e27f7f|50–60%}}|{{legend|#d75d5d|60–70%}}}}
{{collapsible list
| title = {{legend|#5bc75b|Rauschenberger}}|{{legend|#aae5aa|30–40%}}|{{legend|#87de87|40–50%}}}}
]]
{{Election box begin no change
| title = Republican lieutenant gubernatorial primary results
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Joe Birkett
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 342,950
| percentage = 50.63
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Steve Rauschenberger
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 202,905
| percentage = 29.95
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Sandy Wegman
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 90,255
| percentage = 13.32
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Lawrence L. Bruckner
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 41,307
| percentage = 6.19
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Jeremy Bryan Cole
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 14
| percentage = 0.00
}}
{{Election box total no change
| votes = 677,431
| percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box end}}
General election
=Candidates=
==On ballot==
- Rod Blagojevich (Democratic Party), incumbent governor of Illinois
- Judy Baar Topinka (Republican Party), Illinois State Treasurer
- Rich Whitney (Green Party), attorney{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
==Write-ins==
The following candidates were write-in candidates.{{cite book|title=Official Vote Cast at the General Election November 7, 2006|date=November 7, 2006|publisher=Illinois State Board of Elections|access-date=September 26, 2023|url=https://archive.org/details/officialvote2006illi/page/n5/mode/2up}}
- Marvin Koch, Chicago-area property manager and naval reservist.
- Mark McCoy (Libertarian Party), legal Scholar and Rights Defender
- Angel Rivera, lung transplant procurement coordinator at the University of Chicago Medical Center
- Mike Shorten
= Predictions =
=Polling=
Image:2006IllinoisGubernatorialElectionPolling061014.gif
=Results=
{{Election box begin | title=2006 Illinois gubernatorial election{{cite web |url=http://www.elections.illinois.gov/ElectionInformation/VoteTotalsList.aspx?ElectionType=GE&ElectionID=19&SearchType=OfficeSearch&OfficeID=3780&QueryType=Office& |title=Ballots Cast |publisher=Elections.illinois.gov |date=2006-11-07 |access-date=2015-03-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319062608/http://www.elections.illinois.gov/ElectionInformation/VoteTotalsList.aspx?ElectionType=GE&ElectionID=19&SearchType=OfficeSearch&OfficeID=3780&QueryType=Office& |archive-date=2012-03-19 |url-status=dead }}}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link|
|party = Democratic Party (United States)
|candidate = Rod Blagojevich (incumbent)
|votes = 1,736,731
|percentage = 49.79%
|change = -2.40%
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Judy Baar Topinka
|votes = 1,369,315
|percentage = 39.26%
|change = -5.81%
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Green Party (United States)
|candidate = Rich Whitney
|votes = 361,336
|percentage = 10.36%
|change = n/a
}}
{{Election box write-in with party link|
|votes = 20,607
|percentage = 0.59%
|change = n/a
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 3,487,989
|percentage = 100.00%
|change = n/a
}}
{{Election box hold with party link no swing|
|winner = Democratic Party (United States)
}}
{{Election box end}}
==Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic==
==Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican==
- Jackson (largest city: Carbondale)
- Cass (Largest city: Beardstown)
- Christian (Largest city: Taylorville)
- Clinton (Largest city: Breese)
- Marion (Largest city: Centralia)
- Mason (Largest city: Havana)
- Greene (Largest city: Carrollton)
- Macoupin (largest city: Carlinville)
- Macon (largest city: Decatur)
- Montgomery (largest city: Litchfield)
- Crawford (largest city: Robinson)
Aftermath
{{unreferenced section|date=March 2017}}
The Green Party became an established political party statewide, according to Illinois state election law, when Rich Whitney received more than 5% of the total vote for governor. The new status provided the party with several new advantages, such as lower signature requirements for ballot access, primary elections, free access to additional voter data, the ability to elect precinct committeemen, run a partial slate of candidates at any jurisdictional level, and slate candidates without petitioning. The only other statewide established political parties were the Democratic and Republican Parties. It is rare for a new political party to become established statewide in Illinois, the last to do so being the Solidarity Party in 1986 and the Progressive Party before that.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
Official campaign websites (Archived)
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060208225125/http://www.whitneyforgov.org/ Whitney's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20061030111515/http://www.rodforillinois.com/ Blagojevich's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20061025192044/http://www.judyforgov.com/ Topinka's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060423015511/http://www.runrandyrun.com/ Stufflebeam's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070305061314/http://www.markmccoy.com/ Mark McCoy's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060619031907/http://kochforgovernor.com/ Koch's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060404182926/http://www.standingupforillinois.org/ Quinn's Campaign Website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060220093058/http://www.joebirkett.com/ Birkett's Campaign Website]
{{2006 U.S. midterm elections}}
{{US Third Party Election}}
{{Rod Blagojevich}}
{{Illinois elections}}