November Elections on the Horizon

In this year of seemingly constant elections it is time to look forward to the next round. Prepare for the political TV adds to start anew as the regularly scheduled fall elections for President, Congress, and the Wisconsin Legislature are approaching. The partisan primary will be Aug. 14, and the general election is Nov. 6.

At the federal level, in addition to voting for President and Vice President and U.S. House of Representatives, Wisconsin will be electing a new U.S. Senator.

Sen. Herb Kohl is not running for another term, and there are five candidates vying for his seat. Current U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin is the lone Democrat running, while there is a four way race on the Republican side. Eric Hovde, Mark Neumann, Tommy Thompson, and Jeff Fitzgerald will face off during the Aug. 14 primary to determine who will run against Baldwin on Nov. 6.

Real Clear Politics, which averages all the publicly released polls, shows former Gov. Tommy Thompson leading in the primary and general.

Baldwin’s decision to run for U.S. Senate has created a ripple effect down the ballot as Wisconsin Reps. Kelda Helen Roys and Mark Pocan are giving up their Assembly seats in order to run for Congress, and they aren’t the only legislators playing musical chairs.

There are two senate districts and 21 assembly districts where no incumbent is running, making for competitive races full of new faces.

The most highly anticipated race is the contest for retiring Sen. Jim Holperin’s seat, which will likely determine which party has control of the state senate during the 2013-14 Legislative Session. Current Rep. Tom Tiffany (R) will face either Lisa Theo, a teacher from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point or attorney Susan Sommer.

Two assembly districts, as a result of redistricting, have two incumbents running: Evan Wynn (R) and Andy Jorgensen (D) have filed in the 43rd Assembly District and Samantha Kerkman (R) and John Steinbrink (D) have filed in the 61st Assembly District.

The GAB’s full list of candidates for the fall election is available here.