The 2006 United States Senate election in California was held November 7, 2006.

Incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...

Democratic U.S. Senator

Dianne Feinstein Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein ( ; born Dianne Emiel Goldman; June 22, 1933) is an American politician who serves as the senior United States senator from California, a seat she has held since 1992. A member of the Democratic Party, she was ...

won re-election to her third full term. Feinstein stood against

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Dick Mountjoy Richard L. Mountjoy (January 13, 1932 – May 18, 2015) was an American Republican politician from Monrovia, California. Personal life Mountjoy was born in Los Angeles, California and graduated from Monrovia-Arcadia-Duarte High School in 1950. ...

, who had never held a statewide elected position, but had been a state senator for several years. Also running was

Libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

Michael Metti, Don Grundmann of the

American Independent Party The American Independent Party (AIP) is a far-right political party in the United States that was established in 1967. The AIP is best known for its nomination of former Democratic Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who carried five states in ...

Todd Chretien Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

of the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...

and Marsha Feinland of the

Peace and Freedom Party The Peace and Freedom Party (PFP) is a left-wing political party with affiliates and former members in more than a dozen American states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana and Utah, but none now have ballot status besides C ...

. 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 Matthew Kipling Fong (November 20, 1953 – June 1, 2011) was an American Republican politician who served as the 30th California State Treasurer. He was a government appointee, finance industry director, and consultant after retiring from the A ...

, and others, declined to run, and a previously announced challenger, businessman Bill Mundell, withdrew his declaration after determining he would not be a self-funded candidate (like

Michael Huffington Michael Huffington (born September 3, 1947), is an American politician, LGBT activist, and film producer. He was a member of the Republican Party, and a congressman for one term, 1993–1995, from California. Huffington was married to Arianna H ...

was in the 1994 election).

Primaries

Link to primary results

Democratic

Green

Others

Candidates

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa Botswana Democratic Party Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, incumbent U.S. Senator, former Mayor of San Francisco Lost in primary * Martin Luther Church, retired program manager * Colleen Fernald, artist and entrepreneur

Republican Party

* Richard Mountjoy, former

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

, former State Assemblyman and candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 1998

American Independent Party The American Independent Party (AIP) is a far-right political party in the United States that was established in 1967. The AIP is best known for its nomination of former Democratic Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who carried five states in ...

* Don J. Grundmann, chiropractor

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...

, writer Lost in primary * Tian Harter, green activist and a 1992 Congressional nominee * Kent Mesplay, environmental activist, air quality inspector, and candidate for President in 2004

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

* Michael Metti, businessman and perennial candidate

Peace and Freedom Party The Peace and Freedom Party (PFP) is a left-wing political party with affiliates and former members in more than a dozen American states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana and Utah, but none now have ballot status besides C ...

* Marsha Feinland, state party chair, socialist activist, and retired teacher

General election

Controversy

On September 22, the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

reported that Mountjoy's official biography, as found on his campaign website, falsely asserted that he had served aboard the battleship ''

USS Missouri Four ships of the United States Navy have been named USS ''Missouri'' in honor of the state of Missouri: *, a sidewheel frigate launched in 1841 and destroyed by fire in August 1843 *, a ''Maine''-class battleship in service from 1900 to 1922. *, a ...

'' during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

—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''.

Predictions

Polling

Results

Feinstein won the election easily. Feinstein won almost every major populated area winning in,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, and

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

. Feinstein was projected the winner right when the polls closed at 11 P.M. EST.

Results breakdown

Final results from the

Secretary of State of California The secretary of state of California is the chief clerk of the U.S. state of California, overseeing a department of 500 people. The secretary of state is elected for four year terms, like the state's other constitutional officers; the officeho ...

References

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

Primaries

Democratic

Green

Others

Candidates

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

Republican Party

American Independent Party The American Independent Party (AIP) is a far-right political party in the United States that was established in 1967. The AIP is best known for its nomination of former Democratic Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who carried five states in ...

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

Peace and Freedom Party The Peace and Freedom Party (PFP) is a left-wing political party with affiliates and former members in more than a dozen American states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana and Utah, but none now have ballot status besides C ...

General election

Controversy

Predictions

Polling

Results

Results breakdown

See also

References

External links

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa Botswana Democratic Party Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...