Vice Presidential Candidates Court Wis.

Republican Paul Ryan is the first of two vice presidential candidates visiting Wisconsin this week. He was in the Green Bay area Wednesday morning, while Democrat Joe Biden visits Eau Claire Thursday.

Wisconsin native Paul Ryan can probably count on a big crowd at his campaign stop at a De Pere ice skating center. Northeastern Wisconsin has a history of voting Republican, but not always. In 2008, voters in the area went for Barack Obama and re-elected a Democratic representative who later went on to lose to a Republican.

Michael Kraft is an emeritus political scientist at UW Green Bay. He says the results of the Walker recall election could be a sign the region is ready to swing Republican again. “This part of the state, as you noted for the congressional district, we had Steve Kagen in for a couple of terms, but prior to that we had Republicans in office. Now we have Republican Reid Ribble. There’s a challenge being mounted by Jamie Wall this year. So this part of the state is viewed as highly competitive. The state itself is viewed as competitive. And, that means, I think, candidates from both major parties will likely be visiting the state; and I hope Northeast Wisconsin.”

Kraft says Mitt Romney’s choice of Ryan as a running mate may give him a slight advantage at winning Wisconsin’s ten electoral votes. However, he says president Obama is polling strongly and has a lead nationally.