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2006 Alaska gubernatorial election
	Borough and census area results; Palin: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% ; Knowles: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%
Governor before election; Frank Murkowski; Republican	Elected Governor ; Sarah Palin; Republican

The 2006 Alaska gubernatorial general election took place on November 7, 2006. The former mayor of Wasilla, Sarah Palin, defeated incumbent governor Frank Murkowski in the Republican primary, and then went on to defeat former governor Tony Knowles in the general election. Palin became the first governor of the state to be born after Alaskan statehood.

Palin would later become the unsuccessful Republican vice presidential nominee in 2008, before resigning as governor in 2009.

Republican primary

Candidates

John Binkley, Fairbanks businessman and former State Senator from Bethel
Gerald Heikes
Merica Hlatcu
Frank Murkowski, incumbent Governor since 2003
Sarah Palin, former mayor of Wasilla (1996–2003) and chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (2003–04)

Incumbent Frank Murkowski (R), first elected governor in 2002, ran for reelection but was defeated in a landslide in the Republican primary by former Wasilla mayor Sarah Palin on August 22, 2006. Murkowski's approval rating at the time of the election was 19%. Murkowski also faced opposition from former state lawmaker and Fairbanks businessman John Binkley.

Results

2006 Republican primary for Alaska governor^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Sarah Palin	51,443	50.59
	Republican	John Binkley	30,349	29.84
	Republican	Frank Murkowski (incumbent)	19,412	19.09
	Republican	Gerald Heikes	280	0.28
	Republican	Merica Hlatcu	211	0.21
Total votes			101,695	100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

Eric Croft, State Representative from Spenard, Anchorage
Tony Knowles, former Governor of Alaska (1995–2003)
Bruce Lemke

Former two-term Governor Tony Knowles and state lawmaker Eric Croft competed for the Democratic ticket for governor. Knowles had a substantial lead over Croft, both at the polls and with fund raising.^{[citation needed]}

Results

2006 Democratic primary for Alaska governor^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tony Knowles	37,316	74.63
	Democratic	Eric Croft	11,952	23.90
	Democratic	Bruce Lemke	732	1.46
Total votes			50,000	100.00

General election

Candidates

Andrew Halcro, president and CEO of Avis Alaska and former State Representative from Anchorage (Independent)
Tony Knowles, former Governor of Alaska (1995–2003) (Democratic)
David Massie (Green)
Sarah Palin, former mayor of Wasilla (1996–2003) and chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (2003–04) (Republican)
Billy Toien, candidate for governor in 2002 (Libertarian)
Don Wright, bush pilot and perennial candidate (Alaska Independence)

Campaign

Republican candidate Sarah Palin, Democratic candidate Tony Knowles, and independent candidate Andrew Halcro faced each other in the general election. Anchorage businessman Andrew Halcro ran as an Independent in the race for governor. Halcro has served in the Alaska State legislature in the past, and is known as a fiscal hawk. Halcro collected about 4,000 signatures to be placed on the general election ballot without party affiliation. Despite Knowles' experience, Palin was able to win.

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report^[3]	Tossup	November 6, 2006
Sabato's Crystal Ball^[4]	Lean R	November 6, 2006
Rothenberg Political Report^[5]	Lean R	November 2, 2006
Real Clear Politics^[6]	Lean R	November 6, 2006

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sarah Palin (R)	Tony Knowles (D)
Rasmussen^[7]	November 3, 2006	45%	44%
Rasmussen^[8]	October 9, 2006	47%	40%
Rasmussen^[9]	September 8, 2006	52%	38%
Rasmussen^[10]	August 3, 2006	51%	38%
Ivan Moore Research^[11]	June 7, 2006	39%	43%

Results

2006 Alaska gubernatorial election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Sarah Palin	114,697	48.33%	−7.6%
	Democratic	Tony Knowles	97,238	40.97%	+0.3%
	Independent	Andrew Halcro	22,443	9.46%	n/a
	Independence	Don Wright	1,285	0.54%	−0.4%
	Libertarian	Billy Toien	682	0.29%	−0.2%
	Green	David Massie	593	0.25%	−1.0%
	Write-in		384	0.16%	+0.1%
Plurality			17,459	7.36%
Turnout			238,307	51.1%
	Republican hold		Swing	−7.6%