Wisconsin Democrats met earlier this month for their annual state convention. Almost 1400 attendees met in Oshkosh to hear from the state’s Democratic leaders.

Democrats at the convention were optimistic about their chances in November, especially following the “blue wave” of special election wins in Senate District 10 and on the state Supreme Court.

Governor candidate Kelda Roys was the biggest news coming out of the convention, as she won the Wispolitics straw poll by a margin of almost 100 votes. Roys won 184 votes, followed by Mahlon Mitchell with 93 and Tony Evers with 91. Andy Gronik, Mike McCabe, Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma), and Rep. Dana Wachs (D-Eau Claire) each received over 80 votes. Matt Flynn received 71 votes. Josh Pade and Paul Soglin trailed with less than 10 votes each. The ten candidates for governor also gave speeches at the convention.

The convention’s keynote speaker was Peter Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend Indiana. Other speakers at the convention included U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, U.S. Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Gwen Moore (D-Milwaukee), Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh), Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse),

Other candidates running against Republican incumbents also spoke, including: Josh Kaul, running for attorney general; Cathy Meyers and Randy Bryce, who are challenging House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Janesville); and several other democrats running for Congressional Districts 5, 7, and 8. For a full list of candidates, please visit our 2018 Election Issue Update.

Wisconsin Republicans held their convention in May.