| Election Name: | 2006 Massachusetts general election |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Previous Election: | 2004 Massachusetts general election |
| Previous Year: | 2004 |
| Next Election: | 2008 Massachusetts general election |
| Next Year: | 2008 |
| Election Date: | November 7, 2006 |
| Seats For Election: | Part of the 2006 United States elections |
The 2006 Massachusetts general election was held on November 7, 2006, throughout Massachusetts.
At the federal level, Ted Kennedy was re-elected to the United States Senate, and all ten seats in the United States House of Representatives were won by incumbent Democratic Party candidates.
Incumbent Republican Governor Mitt Romney did not run for re-election and was succeeded by Democrat Deval Patrick. Martha Coakley was elected Attorney General. Democratic incumbents were re-elected Secretary of the Commonwealth, Auditor, and Treasurer.
In the Massachusetts General Court, Democrats gained one seat in the Senate and two seats in the House.
Incumbent Republican governor Mitt Romney chose not to seek re-election for a second term in office.
Primary elections for Governor and Lieutenant Governor were conducted separately with the Democrats nominating former Assistant U.S. Attorney General Deval Patrick and Mayor of Worcester Tim Murray. The Republicans nominated a ticket of incumbent Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and former State Representative Reed Hillman. Patrick and Murray were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor in the general election.
| Election Name: | 2006 election for Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2002 Massachusetts general election |
| Previous Year: | 2002 |
| Next Election: | 2010 Massachusetts general election |
| Next Year: | 2010 |
| Nominee1: | William F. Galvin |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,635,714 |
| Percentage1: | 82.31% |
| Nominee2: | Jill Stein |
| Party2: | Green Party of the United States |
| Popular Vote2: | 351,495 |
| Percentage2: | 17.69% |
| Secretary of the Commonwealth | |
| Before Election: | William F. Galvin |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | William F. Galvin |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
Incumbent Democratic Secretary William F. Galvin ran for re-election to a fourth term in office. He was opposed in the Democratic primary by John C. Bonifaz, a voting-rights activist who founded the National Voting Rights Institute.
| Source | Date | MoE | Candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Primary | William F. Galvin | John Bonifaz | Und | |||
| Suffolk University[1] | August 17–21, 2006 | ±5.1% | 49% | 5% | 46% | |
| Suffolk University[2] | June 22–26, 2006 | ±4.0% | 50% | 9% | 38% | |
In the general election, Galvin's only challenger was Green-Rainbow nominee Jill Stein, a medical doctor and community activist who ran for governor in 2002.
| Source | Date | MoE | Candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Election | Galvin (D) | Stein (GR) | Und. | |||
| Suffolk University[3] | October 20–23, 2006 | ±4.9% | 57% | 13% | 31% | |
| Suffolk University[4] | October 2–4, 2006 | ±4.4% | 56% | 11% | 33% | |
| Suffolk University | August 17–21, 2006 | ±4.0% | 54% | 11% | 35% | |
| Suffolk University | June 22–26, 2006 | ±4.0% | 52% | 9% | 35% | |
| Suffolk University[5] | May 3, 2006 | ±4.9% | 46% | 10% | 43% | |
| Suffolk University[6] | April 3, 2006 | ±4.9% | 46% | 8% | 44% | |
Incumbent Attorney General Thomas Reilly ran for Governor instead of seeking a third term in office.
Democratic Middlesex County District Attorney Martha Coakley was elected Attorney General, defeating former Norfolk County District Attorney Republican Larry Frisoli, a trial attorney from Belmont[7] who was known for his handling of the Jeffery Curley case against NAMBLA. Both candidates were unopposed for nomination in their parties' primaries.
| Source | Date | MoE | Coakley (D) | Frisoli (R) | Und. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suffolk University | October 20–23, 2006 | ±4.9% | 59% | 18% | 14% | |
| Suffolk University | October 2–4, 2006 | ±4.4% | 52% | 15% | 33% | |
| Suffolk University | August 17–21, 2006 | ±4.0% | 50% | 9% | 39% | |
| Suffolk University | June 22–26, 2006 | ±4.0% | 50% | 16% | 33% | |
| Suffolk University | May 3, 2006 | ±4.9% | 49% | 13% | 36% |
| Election Name: | 2006 election for Massachusetts Treasurer and Receiver-General |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2002 Massachusetts general election#Treasurer and Receiver-General |
| Previous Year: | 2002 |
| Next Election: | 2010 Massachusetts general election#Treasurer and Receiver-General |
| Next Year: | 2010 |
| Nominee1: | Timothy P. Cahill |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,641,196 |
| Percentage1: | 83.58% |
| Nominee2: | James O'Keefe |
| Party2: | Green Party of the United States |
| Popular Vote2: | 322,493 |
| Percentage2: | 16.42% |
| Treasurer and Receiver-General | |
| Before Election: | Timothy P. Cahill |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Timothy P. Cahill |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
Incumbent Democrat Timothy P. Cahill was re-elected over Green-Rainbow candidate James O'Keefe, who also ran in 2002. Republican Ronald K. Davy, a financial analyst and Hull selectman, was nominated but failed to reach signature requirement to qualify for the ballot.[8]
| Source | Date | MoE | Cahill (D) | O'Keefe (GR) | Davy (R) | Und. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suffolk University | October 20–23, 2006 | ±4.9% | 56% | 15% | 29% | ||
| Suffolk University | October 2–4, 2006 | ±4.4% | 51% | 11% | 37% | ||
| Suffolk University | August 17–21, 2006 | ±4.0% | 48% | 10% | 42% | ||
| Suffolk University | June 22–26, 2006 | ±4.0% | 47% | 7% | 10% | 35% | |
| Suffolk University | May 3, 2006 | ±4.9% | 46% | 6% | 6% | 41% | |
| Suffolk University | April 3, 2006 | ±4.9% | 40% | 21% | 30% |
| Election Name: | 2006 election for Massachusetts Auditor |
| Country: | Massachusetts |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2002 Massachusetts general election#Auditor |
| Previous Year: | 2002 |
| Next Election: | 2010 Massachusetts general election#Auditor |
| Next Year: | 2010 |
| Nominee1: | Joe DeNucci |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,563,716 |
| Percentage1: | 80.89% |
| Nominee2: | Rand Wilson |
| Party2: | Working Families Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 369,513 |
| Percentage2: | 19.11% |
| Auditor | |
| Before Election: | Joe DeNucci |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Joe DeNucci |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
Incumbent Democrat Joe DeNucci was re-elected for a sixth term over Working Families nominee Rand Wilson, a union organizer and labor communicator. Republican candidate Earle Stroll, a 52-year-old small-business consultant from Bolton,[9] also failed to reach signature requirement to qualify for the ballot. Green-Rainbow candidate Nathanael Fortune, a physicist from Smith College and a Whatley School Committee member, dropped out of the race for personal reasons in late March 2006.
| Source | Date | MoE | DeNucci (D) | Wilson (WF) | Und. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suffolk University | October 20–23, 2006 | ±4.9% | 56% | 10% | 35% |
| Suffolk University | October 2–4, 2006 | ±4.4% | 48% | 13% | 38% |
| Suffolk University | August 17–21, 2006 | ±4.0% | 46% | 11% | 42% |
see 2006 United States House of Representatives elections in Massachusetts
see 2006 Massachusetts Senate election
see 2006 Massachusetts House of Representatives elections
See 2006 Massachusetts Governor's Council election
There were three statewide ballot questions, all initiatives, which the Massachusetts voters voted on this election, and all were defeated.[10] [11] [12] There were also various local ballot questions around the state.
Statewide Questions:
| Source | Date | MoE | Question | Yes | No | Und |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNH/Globe[13] | October 22–25, 2006 | ±4.1% | Wine in food stores | 57% | 38% | 5% |
| Suffolk University | October 20–23, 2006 | ±4.9% | Wine in food stores | 52% | 40% | 8% |
| Fusion voting | 26% | 51% | 23% | |||
| Collective bargaining for childcare providers | 34% | 36% | 30% | |||
| Suffolk University[14] | October 10–11, 2006 | ±4.9% | Wine in food stores | 50% | 41% | 9% |
| Suffolk University | October 2–4, 2006 | ±4.4% | Wine in food stores | 47% | 44% | 9% |
| Fusion voting | 27% | 48% | 24% | |||
| Collective bargaining for childcare providers | 42% | 33% | 25% | |||
| Suffolk University | August 17–21, 2006 | ±4.0% | Wine in food stores | 54% | 38% | 8% |
| Fusion voting | 35% | 48% | 18% | |||
| Collective bargaining for childcare providers | 46% | 32% | 22% | |||
| Suffolk University | June 27, 2006 | ±4.0% | Wine in food stores | 61% | 31% | 9% |
| Fusion voting | 34% | 48% | 19% | |||
| Collective bargaining for childcare providers | 42% | 37% | 22% |
| Massachusetts Question 1 (2006) | |
| Sale of Wine by Food Stores | |
| Yes: | 915,076 |
| No: | 1,180,708 |
| Total: | 2,095,784 |
| Mapcaption: | Yes No |
Sale of Wine by Food Stores. A law to allow local authorities to license stores selling groceries to sell wine.
| Massachusetts Question 2 (2006) | |
| Nomination of Candidates for Public Office | |
| Yes: | 688,096 |
| No: | 1,302,143 |
| Total: | 1,990,239 |
| Mapcaption: | YesNo |
A law to create "more ballot choices" by allowing for fusion voting.
A law to allow home-based family child care providers providing state-subsidized care to bargain collectively with the state government.
| Massachusetts Question 3 (2006) | |
| Family Care Worker Unionization | |
| Yes: | 951,988 |
| No: | 1,035,707 |
| Total: | 1,987,695 |
| Mapcaption: | YesNoTie |
Attorney General
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Ballot Questions
Question 1 - Sale of Wine by Food Stores:
Question 2 - Nomination of Candidates for Public Office:
Not on statewide ballot in 2006: