The 2006 Maryland Attorney General election will decide the next Attorney General

Attorney General of Maryland

The Attorney General of Maryland is the chief legal officer of the State of Maryland in the United States and is elected by the people every four years with no term limits...

 of the state of Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The primary election was held on September 12, 2006, and the general election was held on November 7, 2006.

Background

Incumbent J. Joseph Curran, Jr.

J. Joseph Curran, Jr.

J. Joseph Curran, Jr. is an American politician and the longest serving elected Attorney General in Maryland history. His son-in-law, Martin J. O'Malley, is the Governor of Maryland.-Background:...

, who has been Attorney General since 1987, decided not to run for re-election due to a possible conflict of interest with his son-in-law Martin O'Malley

Martin O'Malley

Martin Joseph O'Malley is an American Democratic politician who is currently serving as the 61st Governor of Maryland. Previously, he served as the mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. He is currently the chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.-Early life, education and career:O'Malley...

, who is running for Governor of Maryland

Governor of Maryland

The Governor of Maryland heads the executive branch of the government of Maryland, and he is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state, and he has a broad range of appointive powers in both the State and local governments,...

. Democratic candidates Doug Gansler

Doug Gansler

Douglas F. "Doug" Gansler is a Maryland politician and Attorney General of Maryland. Gansler won the Democratic nomination in the primary election on September 12, 2006, and beat Republican Scott Rolle in the general election on November 7, 2006...

 and Stuart O. Simms

Stuart O. Simms

Stuart "Stu" O. Simms is a Maryland politician, who ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic Party's nomination in the 2006 election for Attorney General of the state of Maryland in the United States....

, as well as Republican candidate Scott Rolle

Scott Rolle

Scott L. Rolle was the State's Attorney for Frederick County, Maryland from 1995 to 2007.Scott L. Rolle is an American actor best known for his role as a co-star in the hit television series Brad Meltzer's DECODED. The series is currently in regular rotation on the History Channel. Production on...

, filed to run for the open position. Another Democratic candidate, Tom Perez, was eliminated before the primary elections by a Maryland Court of Appeals

Maryland Court of Appeals

The Court of Appeals of Maryland is the supreme court of the U.S. state of Maryland. The court, which is composed of one chief judge and six associate judges, meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building in the state capital, Annapolis...

 ruling that had found that Perez had not practiced law in Maryland for ten years, which is the minimum requirement to run for the office of Attorney General.

Democrats

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

• Doug Gansler
  Doug Gansler
  Douglas F. "Doug" Gansler is a Maryland politician and Attorney General of Maryland. Gansler won the Democratic nomination in the primary election on September 12, 2006, and beat Republican Scott Rolle in the general election on November 7, 2006...
  
  , Montgomery County
  Montgomery County, Maryland
  Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
  
   State's Attorney
• Stuart O. Simms
  Stuart O. Simms
  Stuart "Stu" O. Simms is a Maryland politician, who ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic Party's nomination in the 2006 election for Attorney General of the state of Maryland in the United States....
  
  , former Baltimore State's Attorney

Republicans

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

• Scott Rolle
  Scott Rolle
  Scott L. Rolle was the State's Attorney for Frederick County, Maryland from 1995 to 2007.Scott L. Rolle is an American actor best known for his role as a co-star in the hit television series Brad Meltzer's DECODED. The series is currently in regular rotation on the History Channel. Production on...
  
  , Frederick County
  Frederick County, Maryland
  Frederick County is a county located in the western part of the U.S. state of Maryland, bordering the southern border of Pennsylvania and the northeastern border of Virginia. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 233,385....
  
   State's Attorney

Primary elections

Polling

Source	Date	Gansler (D)	Rolle (R)
Baltimore Sun/Potomac Inc.	September 27, 2006	54%	26%

Results