Gubernatorial Candidates Compete For Swing Counties In Northern, Western Wisconsin

Gov. Scott Walker and Democratic challenger Mary Burke are making a strong push for votes in western and northern Wisconsin ahead of Tuesday’s election.

Both candidates are banking on heavy turnout from their political bases. Walker needs Republicans to turn out Waukesha, Washington and Ozaukee counties. Burke needs lots of Democratic votes in Milwaukee, Dane and Rock counties.

They’ve both nevertheless spent considerable time campaigning in swing counties. For example, they both visited Eau Claire County on Monday, which Walker won in his 2012 recall and President Barack Obama won just a few months later.

Marquette University’s Charles Franklin said Burke has a lot to gain in western Wisconsin.

“If Democrats can hold that area and do at least proportionately as well as they did in the presidential and Senate races, that would be a strong showing for them compared to where they were in the recall,” said Franklin.

Similarly, Franklin said that Walker is hoping to turn things around in northern Wisconsin counties between Wausau and Superior.

“So again, the same pattern in reverse: that those are areas Republicans would like to run up the score in, but if the vote looked more like November 2012, it could be a more even balance,” said Franklin.

Both Franklin and the Government Accountability Board predict that turnout could be close to the recall, when 2.5 million people voted. That total would be almost a half-million more than the number of people who voted in the last two midterm elections, but about a half-million less than the number of people who voted in the last presidential race.