Monmouth and Marquette are both out with new polls of the Wisconsin Senate race, and it’s tough to reconcile them. Monmouth, making their first pass of the state, gives Democrat Russ Feingold a massive 54-41 lead over Republican Sen. Ron Johnson. However, Marquette has Feingold up just 48-45, a big drop from his 53-42 lead just a month ago. Weirdly, both pollsters basically agree on where the presidential contest stands: Monmouth has Hillary Clinton leading 43-38, while Marquette has her up 41-38.
Marquette has a solid track record in Wisconsin, so their numbers shouldn’t be dismissed. However, national Republicans aren’t acting like they think this race is close right now. In mid-July, the NRSC announced they were shifting their planned advertising to just the final three weeks of the race, and there’s no indication that they’ve decided to send more money here. The Koch brothers’ Freedom Partners Action Fund also canceled a planned $2.2 million reservation in July, though they launched a smaller $1 million buy since then. If more Republican money goes to Wisconsin, it will be a strong sign that Johnson is within striking distance, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Let's take this race off the table. Please chip in $3 for Russ Feingold today