2006 United States Senate election in Maryland explained

Election Name:2006 United States Senate election in Maryland
Country:Maryland
Type:presidential
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:2000 United States Senate election in Maryland
Previous Year:2000
Next Election:2012 United States Senate election in Maryland
Next Year:2012
Election Date:November 7, 2006
Image1:Ben Cardin portrait.jpg
Nominee1:Ben Cardin
Party1:Democratic Party (United States)
Popular Vote1:965,477
Percentage1:54.21%
Nominee2:Michael Steele
Party2:Republican Party (United States)
Popular Vote2:787,182
Percentage2:44.19%
Map Size:300px
U.S. Senator
Before Election:Paul Sarbanes
Before Party:Democratic Party (United States)
After Election:Ben Cardin
After Party:Democratic Party (United States)

The 2006 United States Senate election in Maryland was held Tuesday, November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Paul Sarbanes, Maryland's longest serving United States Senator, decided to retire instead of seeking a sixth term. Democratic nominee Ben Cardin, a U.S. Representative, won the open seat, defeating Republican Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Withdrew

Declined

Campaign

Kweisi Mfume, a former congressman and NAACP President, was the first to announce for the position, in March 2005. Ben Cardin, then a congressman since 1987, was the only other major candidate until September 2005, when former Baltimore County Executive Dennis F. Rasmussen, American University professor Allan Lichtman, and wealthy Potomac businessman Josh Rales entered the contest. Thirteen other candidates subsequently also entered the primary. As of August 2006, Cardin had raised more than $4.8 million and collected endorsements from a number of Democratic politicians, the AFL–CIO, and The Washington Post; Mfume had raised over $1.2 million and collected endorsements from the Maryland State Teachers Association, Progressive Maryland, former Maryland Governor Parris Glendening, the National Organization for Women, and Maryland Congressmen Elijah Cummings and Al Wynn.

On August 31, 2006, Maryland Public Television (MPT) and the League of Women Voters (LWV) sponsored a debate between the two leading Democratic Primary Candidates.[4] [5] The LWV of Maryland and MPT arbitrarily excluded most of the FEC qualified candidates from the only televised debates in the primary election. There were 18 candidates in this race, only 2, Ben Cardin and Kweisi Mfume, were allowed to debate, despite the strenuous protests of the excluded candidates. Lichtman, Rales, and Rasmussen petitioned MPT and LWV for inclusion in the debate but received no response. On the day of the debate, Lichtman, his wife, and a campaign aide were arrested for trespassing while protesting during the taping of the debate.[6] They were found not guilty on all charges. The judge in the case said it should never have been brought to court and was a gross violation of the parties' constitutional rights.[7]

Debates

Polling

SourceDateBen
Cardin
A. Robert
Kaufman
Allan
Lichtman
Kweisi
Mfume
Josh
Rales
Dennis F.
Rasmussen
align=left Washington Post[8] June 25, 200626%2%4%33%0%4%
align=left Baltimore Sun[9] July 17, 200632%1%1%28%1%1%
align=left Public Opinion Strategies[10] August 1–2, 200631%25%4%6%
align=left Gonzales Research[11] August 30, 200643%30%6%
align=left SurveyUSA[12] August 31, 200638%42%7%
align=left SurveyUSA[13] September 11, 200647%38%7%

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Campaign

Michael S. Steele was expected to win the Republican primary, and the Baltimore Sun wrote the month before that he faced "only nominal opposition".[14] Among a field of nine other candidates, the only Republican receiving sufficient media coverage was Daniel Vovak.

Results

General election

Candidates

Campaign

This was Maryland's first open Senate seat since 1986, when junior Senator Barbara Mikulski was first elected.

Michael Steele won the Republican nomination after facing little competition in the contest for the Republican ticket. With mostly unknown secondary candidates, Steele received 87% of the Republican Primary vote.

Third District Congressional Representative Ben Cardin won the Democratic Party nomination after facing tough competition in the contest for the Democratic ticket from former congressman and NAACP President Kweisi Mfume, businessman Josh Rales, former Baltimore County Executive Dennis F. Rasmussen, and several lesser-known candidates. Cardin received 44% of the Democratic Primary vote to 40% for Mfume, his next closest competitor. All other candidates received percentages only in the single digits.

Kevin Zeese, the nominee for the Green, Populist and Libertarian Parties, was also on the ballot.

Though Steele lost the general election by 10% of the vote, a much wider margin than predicted, his was and remains the best showing for a Republican in a Senate race in Maryland since Charles Mathias, Jr. was re-elected in 1980 with 66.17% of the vote.

Controversies

See main article: Controversies of the 2006 United States Senate election in Maryland.

Both Steele and Cardin made controversial statements and advertising throughout the campaign.

Debates

The first debate of the race was held Tuesday, October 3, 2006. All three candidates were present and participated. The evening was hosted by the Baltimore Urban League and moderated by Charles Robinson from Maryland Public Television and Doni Glover from BMORENEWS.[17]

The first televised debate of the campaign was broadcast on News Channel 8 on the program "News Talk". All three candidates participated in the debate, and were moderated by Bruce DePuyt, the host of the program. There was no audience. This debate was widely reported because of the constant bickering between the three candidates, who often interrupted and talked over one another.[18]

Another debate took place between Steele and Cardin on Sunday, October 29, 2006, as a part of the Meet The Press Senatorial debate series. Moderated by Tim Russert, the debate focused primarily on the Iraq War and stem-cell research, amongst other issues.[19]

The three candidates all participated in the final debate of the campaign on Friday, November 3, 2006. The event was sponsored by the Collective Banking Group and held at the First Baptist Church of Glenarden.[20]

Cardin primarily attacked Steele over his close relations with President Bush, including pictures of Bush and Steele in Cardin's TV ads.[21] Steele focused on low taxes, less government spending, free markets and national security.[22]

Predictions

SourceRankingAs of
align=left The Cook Political Report[23] November 6, 2006
align=left Sabato's Crystal Ball[24] November 6, 2006
align=left Rothenberg Political Report[25] November 6, 2006
align=left Real Clear Politics[26] November 6, 2006

Polling

SourceDateBen
Cardin (D)
Michael
Steele (R)
Kevin
Zeese (G)
align=left Baltimore Sun[27] April 200541%37%
align=left Baltimore Sun[28] October 25, 200547%38%
align=left Potomac Survey Research[29] November 1, 200541%32%
align=left Rasmussen[30] November 21, 200549%41%
align=left Rasmussen[31] January 13, 200640%45%
align=left Zogby[32] January 20, 200649%43%
align=left Rasmussen[33] February 22, 200649%35%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[34] March 31, 200649%39%
align=left Gonzales Research[35] April 18, 200649%35%
align=left Rasmussen[36] April 25, 200645%35%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[37] June 21, 200651%40%
align=left Washington Post[38] June 25, 200649%39%
align=left Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[39] July 6–10, 200647%36%
align=left Rasmussen[40] July 17, 200647%41%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[41] July 24, 200650%42%
align=left Public Opinion Strategies (R)[42] August 1–2, 200643%35%
align=left Rasmussen[43] August 18, 200647%42%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[44] August 28, 200650%41%
align=left Gonzales Research[45] August 30, 200644%39%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[46] September 10, 200649%40%
align=left Rasmussen[47] September 19, 200650%43%
align=left SurveyUSA[48] September 20, 200647%48%4%
align=left Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[49] September 25, 200651%40%
align=left VC Research (R)[50] September 27–28, 200644%39%
align=left Zogby/Wall Street Journal[51] September 28, 200652%39%
align=left Mason-Dixon/MSNBC[52] October 2, 200647%41%1%
align=left Public Opinion Strategies (R)[53] October 2–4, 200647%43%
align=left Reuters/Zogby[54] October 5, 200645%37%
align=left USA Today/Gallup[55] October 6, 200654%39%
align=left Rasmussen[56] October 16, 200653%44%
align=left SurveyUSA[57] October 18, 200646%46%3%
align=left VC Research (R)[58] October 22–23, 200641%39%
align=left Garin Hart Yang (D)[59] October 23–24, 200652%40%
align=left Rasmussen[60] October 26, 200649%42%
align=left Washington Post[61] October 29, 200654%43%1%
align=left Reuters/Zogby[62] November 2, 200649%44%
align=left Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.[63] November 2, 200649%43%2%
align=left SurveyUSA[64] November 3, 200647%47%
align=left Mason-Dixon/MSNBC[65] November 5, 200647%44%1%
align=left SurveyUSA[66] November 6, 200649%46%3%

Results

Despite polls days before the election showing the race at a 3% margin, Cardin won by just over 10% with a 178,295-vote margin, although, this is the closest a Republican has come to winning a U.S. Senate election in Maryland since Charles Mathias was reelected in 1980. On the same day, incumbent Republican governor Bob Ehrlich lost reelection to Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley.

Results by county

County! colspan="2"
Ben CardinDemocraticMichael SteeleRepublicanKevin ZeeseGreenWrite-InsIndependentMarginTotalVotes

Cast

%%%%%
Allegany839638.87%1289259.69%3091.43%20.01%-4496-20.82%21599
Anne Arundel8268744.17%10111054.01%33311.78%790.04%-18423-9.84%187207
Baltimore (City)11280574.54%3518523.25%32282.13%1200.08%7762051.29%151338
Baltimore (County)14526251.55%13129146.59%51171.82%1400.05%139714.96%281810
Calvert1268742.46%1670355.90%4811.61%100.03%-4016-13.44%29881
Caroline286031.74%595766.12%1922.13%10.01%-3097-34.37%9010
Carroll1889330.19%4255067.99%11141.78%260.04%-23657-37.80%62583
Cecil1160040.73%1629657.21%5772.03%100.04%-4696-16.49%28483
Charles2093850.77%1974347.87%5391.31%220.05%11952.90%41242
Dorchester418339.28%632659.40%1341.26%70.07%-2143-20.12%10650
Frederick2939840.38%4217457.93%11961.64%320.04%-12776-17.55%72800
Garrett268627.42%699571.42%1101.12%30.03%-4309-44.00%9794
Harford3259035.82%5670362.32%16641.83%370.04%-24113-26.50%90994
Howard5687353.90%4701544.55%15771.49%590.06%98589.34%105524
Kent348444.34%423953.95%1341.71%10.01%-755-9.61%7858
Montgomery20526467.16%9661931.61%35781.17%1520.05%10864535.55%305613
Prince George's15479875.01%4948423.98%19480.94%1500.07%10531451.03%206380
Queen Anne's593533.03%1171065.17%3181.77%60.03%-5775-32.14%17969
St. Mary's1161440.77%1638157.50%4821.69%110.04%-4767-16.73%28488
Somerset265139.53%395358.95%991.48%30.04%-1302-19.42%6706
Talbot584437.13%968661.55%2001.27%80.05%-3842-24.41%15738
Washington1592138.56%2477359.99%5821.41%170.04%-8852-21.44%41293
Wicomico1057137.66%1707460.83%4051.44%170.06%-6503-23.17%28067
Worcester753737.47%1232661.28%2491.24%30.01%-4789-23.81%20115
Total96547754.33%78318544.07%275641.55%9160.05%18229210.26%1777142
Counties that flipped from Democrat to Republican

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Joseph Werner . https://web.archive.org/web/20080203234904/http://www.attorneywerner.com/joewerner/index.php . February 3, 2008 . January 13, 2010 . dead . mdy-all .
  2. News: Van Susteren Quits, Citing Fundraising Lag . Matthew . Mosk . The Washington Post . washingtonpost.com . April 22, 2006 . January 13, 2010.
  3. News: Van Hollen Says He Won't Run for Senate. Tim . John . Wagner. Craig . July 12, 2005 . The Washington Post. August 6, 2017.
  4. News: Mfume, Cardin Stress Contrasts In TV Debate . The Washington Post . Matthew . Mosk . September 1, 2006 . January 13, 2010.
  5. Web site: Free Campaign websites, Free Candidate Search engine, 24/7 elections and politics . Vovak.politicalgateway.com . January 13, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20061118152537/http://www.vovak.politicalgateway.com/cand.php?id=305&page=press&prid=682 . November 18, 2006 . dead . mdy-all.
  6. News: Mfume, Cardin Stress Contrasts In TV Debate . The Washington Post . Matthew . Mosk . September 1, 2006 . January 13, 2010.
  7. Web site: 2006-11-18 . Allan J. Lichtman . 2024-06-01 . Baltimore Sun . en-US.
  8. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/polls/postpoll_mdpolitics_062706.htm Washington Post
  9. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-te.md.poll17jul17,0,549888.story?coll=bal-home-headlines Baltimore Sun
  10. http://blog.washingtonpost.com/annapolis/2006/08/poll_shows_ehrlich_omalley_tie.html#23985 Public Opinion Strategies
  11. http://www.washingtontimes.com/metro/20060830-122040-2370r.htm Gonzales Research
  12. http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReportEmail.aspx?g=26d679ed-7ba8-4dba-827f-b782b0159f5f SurveyUSA
  13. http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReportEmail.aspx?g=e4e21d40-39a8-48eb-969f-51f49ae8be8c SurveyUSA
  14. News: Maryland: Politics – Senate candidates get national airing . The Baltimore Sun . August 26, 2006 . September 25, 2013.
  15. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-politicsqa0516,0,3579484.story?coll=bal-home-headlines David Nitkin on state politics issues; Editor addresses energy rates, upcoming elections, personnel probe
  16. John Wagner, Zeese Wins the Triple Crown, The Washington Post, June 13, 2006.
  17. Web site: Zeese, Steele, Cardin Debate . January 13, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110519201932/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1835435218560670454 . May 19, 2011 . dead . mdy-all .
  18. News: Cardin, Steele Square Off in Televised Debate . The Washington Post . washingtonpost.com . October 26, 2006 . Matthew . Mosk . Ann E. . Marimow . January 13, 2010.
  19. News: Debate Puts Steele on Defense . The Washington Post . washingtonpost.com . October 30, 2006 . Matthew . Mosk . Ann E. . Marimow . January 13, 2010.
  20. Web site: Final Debate For Maryland U.S. Senate Race . January 13, 2010.
  21. Web site: Archived copy . 2006-06-22 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060622224926/http://progressivemaryland.org/files/public/images/SteeleHuggingBush051130.jpg . June 22, 2006 . mdy-all .
  22. Web site: Steele . Michael . Michael Steele : Now Is the Time to Act . Townhall.com . February 8, 2008 . January 13, 2010.
  23. Web site: 2006 Senate Race Ratings for November 6, 2006 . The Cook Political Report . https://web.archive.org/web/20080605093937/https://cookpolitical.com/races/report_pdfs/2006_sen_ratings_nov6.pdf . September 30, 2021. June 5, 2008 .
  24. Web site: Election Eve 2006: THE FINAL PREDICTIONS . Sabato's Crystal Ball . November 6, 2006 . June 25, 2021.
  25. Web site: 2006 Senate Ratings . Senate Ratings . The Rothenberg Political Report . June 25, 2021.
  26. Web site: Election 2006 . Real Clear Politics . June 25, 2021.
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