Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Mike Tate:
“The victories tonight of Senators Wirch and Holperin cap off successful recall elections this summer for Democrats, progressives, moderates and independents. Democrats won more races, recalled two Republican senators, protected every Democratic incumbent, shifted the balance of power in the state Senate away from conservatives, and forced Walker and the GOP to pay public lip service to moderation and bipartisanship for the first time since they took power in January. All of these facts show that voters gave Democrats the overall victory in this summer’s historic senate recall elections.”
Facts:
- Democrats won 5 of 9 recall contests – an obvious majority.
- Recalls against all three Democrat incumbents failed. No Democrat was recalled for taking bold steps to stand up to the extreme, divisive Walker agenda.
- Two GOP senators were recalled for rubberstamping the radical Walker agenda – a critical achievement that equals the total number of lawmakers ever recalled in Wisconsin history.
- As a result of these elections, the balance of power in the Wisconsin State Senate has shifted away from the Walker-Fitzgerald agenda. The state Senate as now constituted would NOT have approved Walker’s extreme, divisive assault on the middle class and working people.
- Democratic successes in the recalls have forced Walker and the GOP to change public posture. Only now is Walker – who has acted unilaterally to advance a staunchly conservative agenda throughout his Administration – talking about ‘bipartisanship.’ It is no coincidence that Walker’s shift in tone came the day after the Aug. 9th recalls. Overall Democratic successes have forced Walker to moderate his public stance.