Immediately after the 2010 elections, many observers viewed the State Senate as the Republican stronghold least likely to change hands in the years to come. Yes, the Assembly Republicans had a very large partisan seat advantage, but Senate Republicans would be on the offensive and sitting in districts with wider voter margins in their favor […]
Watch for Hamilton Consulting’s Recall Analysis After the Polls Close
Date Tue, May. 8, 2012 - 10:43am By Hamilton
Don’t forget to get out and vote in today’s recall primary! The polls are open until 8PM, and you do not need to have an ID to vote. Voters may cross over to vote in different parties’ primaries so long as they only vote in one election for each office – Governor, Lt. Governor, and […]
Walker Holds Lead Two Weeks Before Primary
Date Thu, Apr. 26, 2012 - 2:31pm By Hamilton
According to recent polls, Gov. Scott Walker leads Democratic challengers Tom Barrett and Kathleen Falk, with the recall primary less than two weeks away. Walker had been trailing the leading Democratic opponents, Kathleen Falk and Tom Barrett, in earlier polls. The Candidates Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D) is the first candidate seeking the Democratic nomination. […]
Retirements and Redistricting Shape the Fall Elections
Date Thu, Apr. 26, 2012 - 2:11pm By Hamilton
Although the recall elections have accelerated the process and drawn the attention of election-watchers away from the general elections, the biennial fight for control of the Wisconsin legislature has quietly begun. Candidates for office this fall can now officially circulate nomination petitions. This year, Wisconsin has moved its partisan primary election date up one month […]
No Voter ID Needed to Vote in Recall Elections
Date Thu, Apr. 26, 2012 - 1:59pm By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to hear challenges to the state’s new voter ID law. This means there is not enough time for the cases to be resolved before the May 8 primary and June 5 recall elections, so the injunctions barring implementation of the law will remain in place. Two separate state appeals courts […]
U.S. Supreme Court Will Set Wisconsin Voting District Lines
Date Thu, Apr. 26, 2012 - 1:56pm By Hamilton
On April 11, 2012, a panel of three federal judges accepted the Democrats’ revisions to two Milwaukee state assembly districts. Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen is appealing the panel’s decision to the United States Supreme Court, which will have the final say in where Wisconsin’s voting district lines lie. Regarding the appeal, Van Hollen […]
Agencies Searching for Burdensome and Outdated Rules
Date Thu, Apr. 26, 2012 - 1:52pm By Hamilton
Gov. Walker’s Executive Order #61 Relating to Job Creation and Small Business Expansion asks all state agencies to conduct a thorough review of regulations, and to recommend for possible elimination, outdated and overly cumbersome regulations that provide no or little demonstrable benefit. A similar effort last year by Michigan’s Office of Regulatory Reinvention generated a […]
Walker Issues Few Vetoes
Date Wed, Apr. 25, 2012 - 12:11pm By Hamilton
The month after the end of the legislative floor session ends is a flurry of bill signings and last ditch efforts aimed at getting the Governor to veto particular bills. This year was no different except that the number of vetoes was significantly lower than previous years owing since both houses of the legislature and […]
Split Opinion Clouds Physician Liability Law
Date Wed, Apr. 18, 2012 - 11:49am By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court, on April 17, issued a split decision greatly expanding the liability of physicians in medical liability cases. The case involved the scope of a physician’s duty to inform a patient, often referred to as “informed consent.” The three-justice majority decision was authored by Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, joined by Justices Ann […]
Health Care Law in the Supreme Court Luncheon Discussion
Date Wed, Apr. 18, 2012 - 10:49am By Hamilton
The U.S. Supreme Court recently held oral arguments in one of the most highly anticipated cases in the modern era, Florida v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a consolidated series of challenges to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as the ObamaCare case. On April 30, a panel of experts […]