ShortFormBlogwisconsin recalls Archives

If the unions win the recall, there will be no stopping union power.
Billionaire David Koch • Speaking about the Wisconsin recall efforts against Gov. Scott Walker. Koch made the comments during a recent speech after a benefit dinner, and were quickly backtracked by his spokeswoman, who clarified, “[Koch Industries thinks] the best workplace relationships are fostered when the employer works directly with its employees. It is a mischaracterization of our principles to say this means we oppose unions or want to dismantle all unions.” The Koch brothers find themselves under ever-increasing scrutiny for supporting political causes around the country, most notably the recall campaign of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. source

Posted by Scott Craft • 0 Comments • Permalink

plan Democrats in Wisconsin are pushing hard to recall Governor Scott Walker for the draconian anti-union bill he pushed through the legislature this past Spring.
problem The recall election could fall on the same day as the GOP presidential primary, ensuring a large Republican turnout and possibly carrying Walker to safety. source

The Details: Stick with us here. In order to recall Walker, Democrats need to gather around 540,000 signatures (that number being 25% of the total votes cast for Governor last year); once this process starts, they’ll have sixty days to hit that target. If and when they do, state election officials will likely schedule the recall on the same day as the next major statewide election. The question is: When should Democratic operatives start gathering signatures?

on the one hand…This fall, recall elections against several state senators (of both parties) will have wrapped up. Some Democrats want to ride that momentum directly into the signature-gathering process, ensuring that they’re able to collect enough. The thing is, if they do it within that timeframe, the recall will most likely fall on the same day as the GOP presidential primary.
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on the other hand…Democrats could also wait longer to gather signatures, timing it so that the recall falls the same day Obama faces re-election. This would result in a much higher voter turnout for Democrats. However, Walker’s anti-union antics may have faded from the public consciousness by then, jeopardizing the Democrats’ ability to get enough signatures.

» The kicker: State Republicans, who would prefer the first scenario, are said to be considering launching a fake “Recall Walker” signature-gathering campaign in the fall, in order to force an early recall. Seriously, guys—who ever said politics was boring?

Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

six Wisconsin GOP Senators will face recall elections, following Wisconsin’s Government Accountability Board (GAB) approving the signatures collected by Democratic activists
three Wisconsin Democratic Senators may or may not face recall elections, as the same GAB stated that they’re not ready to approve the signatures collected by GOP activists source

» So, what’s going on here? Basically, the GAB’s decision means they believe the signatures collected by Democrats, in the aftermath of Gov. Scott Walker’s nationally spotlighted union-busting effort, are legitimate. The Republican signatures, however, “have raised numerous factual and legal issues which need to be investigated and analyzed,” the board says. This is likely to ignite a firestorm of accusations about political bias, favoritism and so forth — the Democrats likely see this as a major boon, as they’ve argued fraud on the GOP’s petitions. We’re inclined to sit tight and see how this plays out, but today’s events, suffice to say, don’t favor the Wisconsin GOP.

Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Feb 2012 14:34