Wisconsin Democrats Win Seat That Was Held By Republicans For Sixteen Years In Special Election

By Zaid Jilani 

Wisconsin marks the birthplace of a burgeoning Main Street Movement defending the economic livelihood of the middle class. The movement was spawned after Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI) and his GOP allies passed new laws stripping public employees of their collective bargaining rights. Last night, Wisconsin Republicans suffered what was perhaps the first electoral defeat resulting from a backlash to their radical anti-labor policies as Democrats won a special election for an assembly seat held by the GOP for the past 16 years:

Democrat Steve Doyle defeated Republican John Lautz for the Wisconsin District 94 Assembly,flipping a seat held by Republicans for 16 years in a race that focused attention on Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s plan to curtail collective bargaining right for most public employees. With 92% of precincts reporting, Doyle won 54% to 46%, based on unofficial results in Tuesday’s special election. The race flips a GOP Assembly seat for the Democrats, who remain in the minority.

The seat was previously held by Mike Huebsch, who Walker picked in January to serve as secretary of administration. Huebsch was first elected in 1994. The district covers rural La Crosse County and parts of Monroe County.

Doyle actually won despite “a barrage of television and radio attacks by third-party groups, along with mailings from the Jobs First Coalition, a Brookfield, Wis.-based group tied to Scott Jensen, the former Republican state Assembly speaker who left office in 2002 amid misconduct allegations.” “I look at it as a rejection of attack ads,” he told the La Crosse Tribune.

America Live Ignores Conservative Money To Continue Fox's Anti-Union Campaign In Wisconsin

From Media Matters

America Live featured a segment focused on "pro-union groups pour[ing]" money into Wisconsin's Supreme Court race in order to criticize "pro-union" attacks on the incumbent, conservative Justice David Prosser Jr. In fact, more outside money has been spent on Prosser's behalf -- a fact ignored byAmerica Live, and Fox News has recently hyped Prosser's campaign, which many see as a referendum on Republican Gov. Scott Walker's anti-union policies.

EMBED

America Live Attacks "Pro-Union Groups" For "Pour[ing]" Money Into WI Supreme Court Race

America Live: "Pro-Union Groups Pour $$$ Into WI Supreme Court Race." On the April 5 edition ofAmerica Live, host Megyn Kelly introduced a segment on outside spending in the Wisconsin state Supreme Court race by saying, "Outside groups are pouring millions of dollars into this race between Justice David Prosser Jr. and challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg." During the segment, the following on-screen text aired:

In Fact, More Outside Spending Has Gone In Support Of Prosser

WSJ: Groups "Have Spent Even More Money In Support Of Mr. Prosser" Than Kloppenburg.From a April 6 article in The Wall Street Journal:

The contest is technically nonpartisan, but liberal organizations and unions have spent heavily in support of Ms. Kloppenburg in the hopes that she would tilt the court's balance and vote to strike down the law. Conservatives and business groups have spent even more money in support of Mr. Prosser. [The Wall Street Journal, 4/6/11]

Conservative Groups Have Reportedly Spent More Than $2 Million On The Race. The Brennan Center for Justice's most recent analysis on special-interest spending shows that four conservative groups have spent a total of $2,177,220 on Wisconsin judicial races in 2011, while the progressive Greater Wisconsin Committee has spent $1,363,040. The Issues Mobilization Council of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, Citizens for a Strong America, Wisconsin Club for Growth, and the State Tea Party Express have all aired ads in support of Prosser. [Brennan Center for Justice, 4/5/11]

In Judicial Primary, More Than Two-Thirds Of All Advertisements Were Reportedly Pro-Prosser.From an analysis by the Brennan Center for Justice:

Through the primary election, more than half a million dollars -- $591,000 -- was spent overall on TV air time. Club for Growth, spending approximately $408,000, accounted for about 69 percent of all television advertising in the primary. It spent more than twice as much for ads supporting Prosser than was spent on TV by the incumbent's challengers, combined. Club for Growth didn't only ring up a higher total than the challengers, it paid more per advertisement: Club for Growth paid an average of about $400 for each of its ads, while Winnig paid less than $200 per ad, and Kloppenburg less than $150 per ad -- indicating that Club for Growth's ads were disproportionately placed in larger markets or during programming with larger audiences than the ads placed by Prosser's challengers.

Prosser handily won the primary, and Kloppenburg placed second. The two candidates will face off in an April 5th general election. [Brennan Center for Justice, 4/5/11]

Fox News Has Recently Hyped Prosser's Campaign

Fox News Contributor Dick Morris Pleads With The Audience To Re-Elect Prosser. From the April 5 edition of Fox News' Hannity:

"Tomorrow, in Wisconsin, there is an election for Judge Presser [sic: Prosser], P-R-E-S-S-E-R [sic] who is the swing vote on the state supreme court on the Walker education reforms, union reforms. It is vital that this guy get re-elected. If you are watching this program and in Wisconsin, do everything you can to get your friends and your neighbors out." [Fox News,Hannity, 4/5/11]

Van Susteren Hosts Prosser The Day Before The Election, Calls The Race The "Meanest, Dirtiest, And Most Vicious Race." On the April 5 edition of Fox News' On The Record, host Greta Van Susteren interviewed Prosser. Van Susteren introduced the interview by stating: "If you think the union fight in Wisconsin is rough, you haven't seen anything. The meanest, dirtiest, and most vicious race is ending tomorrow as voters go to the polls in Wisconsin, not to pick a Wisconsin politician but to pick a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice." Van Susteren noted that outside money was being spent in both races, and that she had invited Kloppenburg to appear on the program, but she declined. [Fox News, On The Record, 4/5/11]

Fox News Previously Pushed Anti-Union Lies To Bolster Walker's Anti-Union Agenda. While covering pro-union protests against Walker's plan to curtail public employees' collective bargaining rights, Fox News pushed false claims about Gov. Scott Walker's campaign promises on the issue, public sector pay, and public opinion polling on support for collective bargaining, among other things. [Media Matters, 3/2/11]