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Recall: Wisconsin Voters Unseat Two Republican Senators

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By Cynthia McCabe

In an unprecedented series of Wisconsin recall elections on Tuesday, two Democratic challengers knocked off Republican state senate incumbents — a sign of continued citizen outrage over efforts by Gov. Scott Walker to effectively eliminate collective bargaining for public workers in that state.

Democrat Jennifer Shilling defeated Republican Sen. Dan Kapanke. Democrat Jessica King defeated Republican Sen. Randy Hopper. Although Democrats fell short of capturing the three seats necessary to win control of the State Senate, the GOP majority was cut to a narrow 17-16 from 19-14.Two Democratic incumbents face recall elections next Tuesday.

The citizen-initiated recall elections came after Walker and conservative lawmakers rammed through legislation gutting public workers’ collective bargaining rights this past spring. Throughout the late winter, hundreds of thousands converged on the state capitol in Madison and in cities across the state in protest.

On Tuesday, grassroots progressive groups’ 12,000 volunteers knocked on 92,000 doors to get out the vote. Polling locations reported high turnout numbers, with some areas notching close to the traffic that came in during the previous presidential elections.

“The historic recall elections represent a movement to elect leaders who represent Wisconsin values,” Mary Bell, president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council said. “Across the state, citizens spoke up – and voiced their frustration at the direction this state has been heading under the leadership and extreme agenda of Scott Walker. Flipping two Senate districts clearly indicates progress has been made – and that’s a credit to voters for helping Wisconsin take a strong step forward in the battle to uphold the middle class.”

 


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