Post-Election Wrap-Up

The Wisconsin General Election was held yesterday, Tuesday November 2 nd. The Government Accountability Board (GAB), which monitors elections and voting, estimated voter turn out would be approximately 50%. Exact numbers will not be available from GAB until December however; preliminary analysis suggests their projection was correct. If interested in analysis of how voter turnout differed between counties and key groups, and how it affected the races, see the Wisconsin Voter Blog from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

State Government:

State seats up for election included Governor and Lieutenant Governor, all 99 State Assembly Districts, and the odd-numbered State Senate Districts.

Governor:
In the Governor's race, Republicans Scott Walker and Rebecca Kleefisch defeated Democrats Tom Barrett and Tom Nelson by a margin of 52%-47% (99% of precincts reporting.)

State Legislature:
In Wisconsin's 2011-2013 State Assembly, Republicans will hold 60 seats to the Democrats 38 seats, with Rep. Bob Ziegelbauer being the only Independent. The 26 "freshman" representatives will be comprised of 21 Republicans and 5 Democrats. The previous session was comprised of 52 Democrats, 46 Republicans and 1 Independent.

In the State Senate race, of the 17 seats up for election Republicans retained or gained 11 seats to the Democrat's 6 seats. Once added to the even-numbered Senate Districts, who were not up for re-election, the 2011-2013 Wisconsin State Senate will be comprised of 19 Republicans and 14 Democrats. Previously, the State Senate make up was 18 Democrats and 15 Republicans.

With the switch in party control, legislative leadership and committee assignments will be changed. Tentative dates for the caucus elections are as follows:

· Senate Democrats: 1 pm, Thursday, November 4

· Senate Republicans: 1:30 PM, Thursday ,November 4
· Assembly Republicans: 1 pm, Monday, November 8
· Assembly Democrats: 2 pm, Tuesday, November 9

As of now, no candidates have requested recounts. Recounts in Wisconsin may be requested by a candidate if the election results are within .5% and over 1,000 votes are cast. The full manual detailing the recount procedure is available from GAB.

Federal Government:

United States Senate:
Republican Ron Johnson defeated the Democratic Incumbent Senator Russ Feingold by a margin of 52%-47%.

House of Representatives:
Congressional Incumbents Paul Ryan (R-1), Tammy Baldwin (D-2), Ron Kind (D-3), Gwen Moore (D-4), James Sensenbrenner (R-5), and Thomas Petri (R-6) all retained their House Seats. Democratic Congressman Steve Kagen was defeated in the 8 th district by Republican Reid Ribble by 55%-45%.

The retirement of 40-year Congressman Dave Obey (D) left an open seat in Wisconsin's 7 th Congressional District that will be filled by Republican Sean Duffy , who defeated Democrat Julie Lassa by 52-44%.

Inaugurations for both the State and Federal officials will be held on Monday January 3, 2011.

Additional Information:

If interested in additional analysis or information, the following subjects have been linked for your convenience:

· Listing of the 2011-2012 Assembly and Senate Membership
· Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Election Wrap-Up
· Full Fall 2010 Elections Results (Statewide Candidates)
· Shifts in the State House by Inside Higher Ed (Gubernatorial races' impacts on  higher education)
· No Curve Balls for Higher Education by Inside Higher Ed and Republican Gains in Congress Could Temper For-Profit Inquiry and Lead to Spending Cuts by The Chronicle of Higher Education (Changes to Congress and their effects on higher education)