2006 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

See also: 2006 United States gubernatorial elections

2006 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

November 7, 2006

Nominee Brad Henry Ernest Istook Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 616,135 310,327 Percentage 66.50% 33.50%

Henry:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Istook:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Tie:      50%      No votes

Governor before election Brad Henry Democratic Elected Governor Brad Henry Democratic

The 2006 Oklahoma gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic governor Brad Henry won re-election to a second term in a landslide, defeating Republican U.S. representative Ernest Istook. Henry took 66.5% of the vote to Istook's 33.5% and swept all but three counties in the state.

As of 2024, this remains the last time that a Democrat was elected Governor of Oklahoma, or along with the concurrent elections, won any statewide office. Republicans later swept all statewide executive offices on the 2010 ballot, as they did majorities in both state legislative chambers.

Background

Though Democrats had dominated state politics for most of Oklahoma's history, the Oklahoma Republican Party had recently gained control of the Oklahoma House of Representatives and held five of the state's six Congressional seats. Henry's opponent, Republican Ernest Istook, was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Oklahoma's 5th congressional district.

As in many Southern states, Oklahoma has favored conservative Democrats to the more liberal members of the party. In his first term, Henry had supported some tax cuts and took centrist positions on many political hot button issues.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Brad Henry, incumbent governor of Oklahoma
• Andrew W. Marr, Jr.

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Brad Henry (incumbent)	226,957	85.82
	Democratic	Andrew W. Marr, Jr.	37,510	14.18
Total votes			264,467	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Ernest Istook, U.S. congressman
• Bob Sullivan, former Oklahoma Secretary of Energy
• James A. Williamson, Oklahoma state senator
• Jim Evanoff

Campaign

Istook's strongest opponent in the primary was Bob Sullivan, who positioned himself as the only "non-career politician" in the race. He ran ads featuring Gailard Sartain that attacked his opponents' "career politician" background. The Sartain ads were seen as over the top and may have hurt his chances. Sullivan said education was a top priority and had led an effort to place an initiative petition on the November 2006 ballot that would have required 65 percent of money earmarked for education be spent in the classroom.

Results

Results by county

Map legend

•   Istook—70–80%
•   Istook—60–70%
•   Istook—50–60%
•   Istook—40–50%
•   Istook—30–40%
•   Istook/Sullivan tie—30–40%
•   Sullivan—30–40%
•   Sullivan—40–50%

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Ernest Istook	99,650	54.71
	Republican	Bob Sullivan	56,347	30.94
	Republican	James A. Williamson	17,769	9.76
	Republican	Jim Evanoff	8,370	4.60
Total votes			182,136	100.00

General election

The incumbent Democratic governor Brad Henry won the election with more than 66 percent of the vote, beating Republican U.S. representative Ernest Istook.

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report	Solid D	November 6, 2006
Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe D	November 6, 2006
Rothenberg Political Report	Safe D	November 2, 2006
Real Clear Politics	Safe D	November 6, 2006

Polling

Source	Date	Brad Henry (D)	Ernest Istook (R)
Survey USA	November 4, 2006	65%	29%
Rasmussen	September 29, 2006	59%	34%
Survey USA	September 26, 2006	64%	33%
Rasmussen	September 6, 2006	54%	33%
Survey USA	August 28, 2006	60%	34%
Sooner Poll	July 17, 2006	57%	29%
Rasmussen	May 7, 2006	50%	39%

Results

2006 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Brad Henry (incumbent)	616,135	66.50%	+23.2
	Republican	Ernest Istook	310,327	33.50%	–9.1
Total votes			926,462	100.00%	n/a
	Democratic hold

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Roger Mills (Largest city: Cheyenne)
• Custer (Largest city: Weatherford)
• Dewey (Largest city: Seiling)
• Woodward (Largest city: Woodward)
• Alfalfa (Largest city: Helena)
• Cleveland (Largest city: Norman)
• Ellis (Largest city: Shattuck)
• Harper (Largest city: Laverne)
• Grant (Largest city: Medford)
• Canadian (Largest city: Yukon)
• Oklahoma (Largest city: Oklahoma City)
• McClain (Largest city: Newcastle)
• Major (Largest city: Fairview)
• Kay (Largest city: Ponca City)
• Tulsa (Largest city: Tulsa)
• Wagoner (Largest city: Coewta)
• Washington (Largest city: Bartlesville)
• Jackson (Largest city: Altus)
• Stephens (Largest city: Duncan)
• Comanche (Largest city: Lawton)
• Kingfisher (Largest city: Kingfisher)
• Logan (Largest city: Guthrie)
• Noble (Largest city: Perry)
• Garfield (Largest city: Enid)

See also

• 2006 Oklahoma elections

External links

Official campaign websites (Archived)

• Brad Henry 2006 Gubernatorial Campaign Site
• Ernest Istook 2006 Gubernatorial Campaign Site
• Oklahoma State Election Board, primary results
• Bob Sullivan 2006 Gubernatorial Campaign Site
• Jim Williamson 2006 Gubernatorial Campaign Site