Democrat recall targets win re-election

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The last two state senators who were subjects of recall elections this summer easily won re-election on Tuesday, Aug. 16.

Sen. Jim Holperin, a Democrat from Conover, defeated Tea Party activist Kim Simac of Eagle River by a 55- to 45-percent margin in District 12 in northeastern Wisconsin.

Holperin, who was elected to the state Senate in 2008, received 30,321 votes to Simac’s 24,813.

In Senate District 22, Democrat Bob Wirch of Kenosha won by a wider 58- to 42-percent margin over Republican challenger Jonathan Steitz. The 22nd District covers all of Kenosha County and the town and city of Burlington in Racine County.

Wirch has served in the Wisconsin Legislature since 1993. He was elected to two terms in the Assembly and has been a member of the Senate since 1997.

With the two Democrats having won re-election, the Republicans have a 17-16 majority in the Senate. Prior to the nine recall elections this summer, Republicans held a 19-14 advantage in the Senate. Two of six Republicans that were recalled were defeated by their Democratic challengers.

Some observers believe the new makeup of will require a more moderate agenda from Wisconsin Republicans.

Senate Republican leader Scott Fitzgerald said his smaller majority means there will be less contentious measures coming from his chamber.

The governor’s office said Republican Scott Walker looks forward to working together to create jobs and “get more Wisconsinites back to work.”

State Democratic Party chairman Mike Tate said the nine recall contests gave his party momentum for what he called “big wins” next year.

All three Democrats who were targeted this summer won their recall elections.

The recalls were spurred by the Republican’s approval of strict limits on collective bargaining by most public employee unions – and a move by Senate Democrats to leave the Capitol for three weeks in an failed attempt to block the measure.

Fitzgerald called for more bi-partisanship, but he still scolded Democrats for pushing what he called a “permanent campaign cycle.”

“The Democrats need to start working with the other side of the aisle, not just moving on to their next recall target,” Fitzgerald said.

Democrats still say they’ll try to recall Walker next year.

Wirch said people are “sick and tired of the extremism they’re getting out there.”

Tags: news, wisconsin, politics