The state of Wisconsin has been an important laboratory for change and politics over the last century. The Progressive movement held its greatest power over Wisconsin, with legendary Progressive Robert LaFollette spearheading electoral and economic reform in the first two decades of the 20th century. The Socialist Party was successful in electing Victor Berger to the House of Representatives (though was denied his seat by wartime measures in the First World War) and several mayors including Frank Zeidler and Daniel Hoan of Milwaukee. Wisconsin has been considered a "battleground" state in the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections, with Democratic candidates Al Gore and John Kerry narrowly keeping the Badger State blue.
Found at:
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Once again, Wisconsin is a laboratory for change and a battleground, with a tightly contested gubernatorial race, two referenda on culture war issues, and one of several competitive House seats in this midterm election. However, the high profile elections are not the only ones on the ballot and several state races could demonstrate Wisconsin's independent spirit and unpredictable political style. I have listed the candidates and web sites below each section for easy access and I hope that this is informative not only to Wisconsin voters, but to political junkies from all corners of the United States.
Governor
In one of the most hotly contested gubernatorial races in the United States, incumbent Democrat Jim Doyle is facing off against former Congressman Mark Green and Green Party candidate Nelson Eisman. Doyle is campaigning on his ability to turn the state's finances around after years of Republican fiscal irresponsibility, as well as his ability to develop new jobs in Wisconsin. Mark Green, however, sees a mass exodus of college graduates and high paying jobs from the Badger State and is campaigning to lower taxes, create a better infrastructure for business, and to clean up corruption in Madison. However, neither candidate is clear of ethically questionable actions as Mark Green was recently told he couldn't use more than $400,000 from his congressional campaign for his gubernatorial race while Jim Doyle has been dogged with allegations that he has tampered with the Elections Board, the Department of Administration, and other state institutions. The two biggest issues in this campaign are taxes and governmental ethics and while recent polls have shown Doyle pulling a way a bit, there is a small government streak in Wisconsin that could go Green's way. Green Party candidate Nelson Eisman will get his share of votes, campaigning on the issue of clean energy and clean government that may get some independents on his side in November.
Jim Doyle http://www.doylelawton.com/
Mark Green http://www.votemarkgreen.com
Nelson Eisman http://www.voteeisman.org
Attorney General
The major issue in the attorney general's race was the defeat of incumbent Democrat Peg Lautenschlager in September's primary. The race has returned to Earth a bit since the high profile primary, with the major issues involving the state crime lab's high back log of cases and reform of drunk driving laws to make first offenses crimes instead of city ordinance violations. Kathleen Falk has significant momentum following her success against Lautenschlager and name recognition has gone up with people remembering her 2002 run for governor. Republican J.B. Van Hollen has seen his former opponent Paul Bucher rally behind him reluctantly and the Republican state party trying to put a Republican in the seat for the first time in years. Van Hollen has tried to make an issue out of the war on terror, though the state attorney general of Wisconsin would rarely have to deal with such issues. While more television ads figure to pop up in the next few weeks, this election will end up being more about partisan affiliation than an earnest belief in one candidate's view on law enforcement.
J.B. Van Hollen http://www.vanhollenforag.com/
Kathleen Falk http://www.kathleenfalk.com/
Eighth Congressional District
With Congressman Mark Green running for governor, the Eighth Congressional District is wide open and one of the most competitive races in the United States in 2006. The Eight District covers Green Bay, Appleton, and the Fox Valley and is one of the highest growth areas in terms of population in the country. Assembly Speaker John Gard is running for the Republican ticket, with a campaign geared toward supporting most of President Bush's agenda. In particular, Gard wants to keep the Bush tax cuts in place, increase border security, and maintain the effort in Iraq until the Iraqis are ready to take over operations. After a tough Democratic primary, Appleton doctor Steve Kagan pulled out a convincing victory and a mandate to run as the more liberal candidate in a moderate district. Kagan is for pulling troops out of Iraq, for comprehensive health care throughout the nation, and for increasing the minimum wage to a living wage. Both have significant funds to draw from, with Gard getting support from President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and Congressman Mark Green. Kagan is a millionaire allergist who has already put in several million dollars of his own money into the campaign. The main issues in this campaign are health care and the Iraq War.
John Gard http://www.gardforcongress.com/
Steve Kagan http://www.kagen4congress.com/
United States Senate
There isn't much competition in 2006 for incumbent Democrat Herb Kohl, who has been running ads for a year to keep his already famous name in the minds of Wisconsin voters. Kohl, whose name is attached to a national department store and a local chain of grocery stores, has millions to spare on a campaign where he has little opposition. Regular conservative candidate Robert Lorge won the Republican nomination by default when Tommy Thompson, Glen Grothman, and Tim Michels refused to run for the seat. Lorge is indeed a conservative alternative to Kohl but Kohl is well liked and his name recognition eclipses that of his opponents. Green Party candidate Rae Vogeler is running on a platform of pulling the United States out of Iraq and improving wages for the working class, while independent candidate Ben Glatzel trots out a series of conservative standards without any party support or name recognition.
Herb Kohl http://www.herbkohl.com/
Robert Lorge http://www.law2win.com/
Rae Vogeler http://www.voterae.org/
Ben Glatzel http://www.glatzelforsenate.com/
Secretary of State
The biggest issue in the campaign to defeat the long time incumbent Doug LaFollette is whether the office of Secretary of State should exist in its current format. LaFollette's primary opponent, Scott Ross, felt that the office should get more powers over state elections like Secretaries of State in other states. Ross lost by 50 percentage points to the incumbent and LaFollette seems poised to win his office back without much opposition. Republican Sandy Sullivan wants to increase the role of the office as a spokesperson for Wisconsin while Green Party candidate Michael LaForest wants the Secretary of State to be active in negotiations with the state's Native American tribes over land rights, casinos, and environmental issues. LaFollette has run a simple campaign based on his advocacy for the environment, his modernization of the state archiving process, and his role as a spokesperson about government to the people of Wisconsin.
Doug LaFollette http://www.douglafollette.com/
Sandy Sullivan http://www.sandysullivan.org/
Michael LaForest http://www.geocities.com/...
State Treasurer
Republican Jack Voight is the incumbent in the office of State Treasurer and, like the Secretary of State race, the biggest issue in this particular election is whether the office should be elected or even exist in its current form. Voight has said during this campaign that he rarely works full time at his office in Madison and that he has not had to hire any new personnel since his first term in office. Democrat Dawn Sass wants the treasurer's office to be involved more in resolving unclaimed land as well as presiding more effectively over the EdVest program, which is a program designed for parents to save for their children's college education. Libertarian candidate Tim Peterson is running to turn the office into a taxpayer's advocate while Green Party candidate Winston Sephus wants the office to be more investigative of questionable state purchases.
Jack Voight http://www.jackvoight.com/
Dawn Sass (no website found)
Tim Peterson http://www.timpeterson.com/
Winston Sephus http://www.sephusfortreasurer.org/
State Referenda
There are two state referenda on the ballot in November, one dealing with the death penalty and another amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage. The death penalty referendum is advisory, giving the State Assembly and Senate popular consent or dissent on establishing this sentencing option for certain homicide cases. The gay marriage amendment would ban gay marriage and the wording is being disputed as an attempt to eliminate legal arrangements that do not fit into the tradition of heterosexual marriage. These issues weight heavily on the minds of Wisconsin voters, who are often passionate about issues of morality and politics. Both referenda figure to be close on the November ballot, though some polls have shown that Wisconsin citizens favor the death penalty as a deterrent to violent crimes.