The 2006 Rhode Island gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Donald Carcieri very narrowly defeated Democratic lieutenant governor Charles J. Fogarty in one of the closest gubernatorial elections in Rhode Island history. With a margin of 2%, this election was also the second-closest race of the 2006 gubernatorial election cycle, behind only the election in Minnesota.
As of 2024[update], this was the last time a Republican was elected Governor of Rhode Island and the last time a Republican won any statewide office in Rhode Island. This is also the last time the Republican candidate won the counties of Bristol and Washington. This is the last time that a gubernatorial nominee and a lieutenant gubernatorial nominee of different political parties were elected governor and lieutenant governor of Rhode Island.
The 2006 gubernatorial election was one of the closest in the history of Rhode Island. Carcieri won all but one county. However, the one county that went for Fogarty was Providence County, home to Providence, Rhode Island, which is heavily populated and known for favoring Democrats. The race at one point was only at a margin of 7,803 votes. Finally at 3:48 A.M. on November 8, Carcieri was declared the winner by the Associated Press. Fogarty conceded early the next morning.
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