Six thousand votes made Wisconsin blue in 2000. While the state's electoral votes went to Democrat Al Gore, the razor-thin margin is more important. It showcased Wisconsin as a swing state, evenly divided between the political right and left.
Wisconsin's political composition is a grab bag of economic populism, pragmatic individualism and Robert LaFollette Sr.'s Progressive legacy. This state's most famous political icons are LaFollette and former Wisconsin Senator and anti-Communist crusader Joseph McCarthy, who are diametrically opposed.
More recently, U.S. Senator Russ Feingold and former governor Tommy Thompson have become Wisconsin's prominent native sons.
With a varied history, the state's vibrant political mix can be attributed to specific regional factors. From the unionized docks of Lake Superior to the emerging white-collar class of the Fox River Valley, Wisconsin's political composition is as rich as it is diverse. Six regions illustrate this diversity.
Madison and
Dane County
Given UW-Madison's activist tradition, one could assume it has always been the most solidly liberal part of the state. However, Madison's history unravels that assumption. Just ask Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, who has been in the state Legislature 49 years.
\This was a very strong Republican area, but a progressive Republican area and LaFollette had a lot of influence here,"" he said.
The progressivism Risser referred to came from ""Fightin'"" Bob LaFollette, governor of Wisconsin from 1901 to 1906. Progressivism is the active support for political and social change by government action.
LaFollette served as a Republican governor and ran for president of the United States as a Progressive in 1924. He carried the state but lost the national election. The Progressive Party continued with LaFollette's sons but dissolved soon after World War II. Risser said the breakup of the Progressive Party in 1946 strengthened the Democrats in Madison.
""The Progressives here went into the Democratic Party,"" he said. ""The first Democratic year in this city and county was 1948.""
In the 1960s, campus radicals succeeded Madison's Progressives. With the Sterling Hall bombing, tear gas on Bascom Hill and regular clashes with military recruiters, UW-Madison's legacy as a community on the political left appears to speak for all of Dane County. However, this assumption does not explain how UW-Madison fits within the city around it.
""The campus is much more Democratic than the state as a whole, but it's not as if the UW has a heavy influence,"" political science Professor Ken Mayer said. ""In terms of Madison, UW students voted about the same way as the rest of Madison.""
John Nichols, editorial page editor for The Capital Times and co-author of ""Jews for Buchanan,"" said the area's Democratic tradition goes beyond Madison's city limits.
""Dane County does tend to be more liberal than almost the rest of the state,"" he said. ""The reasons for that are Madison's social liberalism as well as a pretty strong overlay of progressive, populist attitudes in the south parts of the county, like in Stoughton and Mount Horeb.""
Milwaukee and
its suburbs
Madison's political identity is incorporated into its surrounding communities and Milwaukee has recently started to do the same. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett is credited with making the City of Milwaukee less polarized from its suburbs.
John Speaker, mayor of Brookfield, called Barrett a regionalist who looked at how the city related to its outlying towns.
""He's looking at more than Milwaukee as an island unto its own,"" he said. ""He's looking at making Milwaukee work with other cities.""
This newfound drive for cooperation may stem from a sense of divisiveness between Milwaukee and its suburbs. Milwaukee has a socialist streak dating back to Emil Seidel serving as the first socialist mayor of a major United States city from 1910 to 1912. Daniel Hoan, another socialist, was mayor of Milwaukee from 1916 to 1940.
Meanwhile, the suburbs are the most heavily Republican area of the state. In 2004, 62 percent of Milwaukee County voted for John Kerry while Washington County, northwest of the Milwaukee, posted a 70 percent turnout for Bush. Milwaukee County's western neighbor, Waukesha County, had a 67 percent turnout for the Republican.
Nichols acknowledged suburbanization has played into the suburbs' political stance, but pointed out that the area around Milwaukee has been occupied by wealthy farmers and New England emigrants, contributing to its the conservative leanings. Nichols also noted a burgeoning Latino population in Waukesha County could change that.
""As those counties fill up and become more populous, they will become less and less Republican,"" he said.
Green Bay and the
Fox River Valley
While the inner suburbs of Milwaukee are gaining population and losing conservative dominance, Green Bay and the Fox River Valley are becoming more conservative as more people move into it. As the economy of the area changes from an industrial base that had numerous paper mills and packing houses to one that has more white-collar jobs, the area shifts to the Republicans. Rep. Karl Van Roy, R-Green Bay, noted this shift.
""I think the people who are living there are doing different things, like operating their own businesses, not just manufacturing paper,"" he said. ""As people move in, it changes the demographics. In the Fox River Valley, we have a great growth area.""
Stretching from Fond du Lac to Kaukauna, the Fox River Valley is the second-fastest growing area of the state after Dane County, according to Van Roy. With the rise in density of population comes suburbs, which are speeding the valley's area transition to conservatism.
""As suburbs build up, they tend to be more Republican in their thoughts and feelings,"" Van Roy said. ""I think that's what is happening in our neck of the woods.""
Along with the current shift toward conservatism is the nation's longest link with the Republican Party. On Feb. 28, 1854, the party was founded in Ripon, a town near Fond du Lac.
In addition to that area's prolonged connection with the Republican Party, Nichols said the recent rise of the right is heightened by changes in employment. He stated the opportunities in the insurance and health care fields are replacing openings in the manufacturing sector.
However, the shift in economics is only part of the entire story.
Green Bay, a city with a long history of unions, is also steadily moving to the political right for other reasons.
""Green Bay is a very heavily Catholic community,"" Nichols said. ""As the Democratic Party has been more associated with social issues, that has cut into the Democratic vote.""
The Northeast
The shift to white-collar employment has not yet heavily impacted the northeastern part of the state, though the area is also generally conservative. U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Green Bay, and a candidate for Wisconsin governor in 2006, concisely described the region's identity.
""I think it's blue-collar conservative,"" he said.
The northeast is sparsely populated and has its own set of issues that define it. Green attributed its Republicanism to its specific, rural concerns.
""We're conservative on sportsman's issues,"" Green said. ""It ranges from gun ownership and NRA [National Rifle Association] issues to access to forest resources for hunters, fishermen and snowmobilers.""
In terms of industry, the northeast, with areas like Minocqua and Manitowish Waters, appeals to the needs of lumberjacks and people from out of state.
""When you go north, you are dealing more directly with the forest and tourism industries,"" Green said.
The forestry industry has imbued the northeast with a long streak of conservativism. Nichols pointed out that the area also has a historical resistance to change.
""When LaFollette was rising as a politician in the 1890s, his opponents tended to come from the northeast,"" he said.
Though stalwartly Republican, the area contains the state's most Democratic county. Menominee County, an American Indian reservation, had an 83 percent turnout for Kerry in the 2004 election. The surrounding counties averaged 57 percent for Bush.
""Generally, American Indians, like other ethnic minorities, tend to vote Democrat,"" political science Professor Dennis Dresang said.
The Northwest
Menominee County is not the only anomaly in the North Woods. The northwest may be written off as another conservative district because of its rural status, but it actually encompasses an assortment of views. The northernmost part of the state, bordering Lake Superior, has always been liberal land.
""I think the grassroots, Democratic feeling is from our history as a highly unionized and industrially-based community with railroads, mining and shipping,"" Dave Ross, mayor of Superior, said.
With the traditional industries of the region comes an influx of federal money. Nichols said area communities require government services.
""They know they want the state and federal government to put money into projects,"" he said. ""That includes everything from maintaining the Port of Superior to providing aid for small farmers.""
Mayer stated the northwest's political leanings go back further than the occupations and projects of the area. Its history, he said, goes all the way to northern Europe, which produced voters who tended to choose progressive candidates.
""The northwest is one of the most Democratic areas of the state and people attribute it to immigration patterns,"" he said. ""A lot of people came from Scandinavia.""
Sen. Russ Decker, D-Schofield, said the northwest has moved away from voting similar to its ancestors. The area's farmers and small business owners are often pragmatic.
""I think most of the people up there are pretty independent-minded and most of them will try to vote for somebody who will relate to their concerns,"" he said.
The Mississippi River
The area along the Mississippi River, from Pierce to Grant County, is another area that values the candidate over affiliation.
""The people of rural Wisconsin are more apt to vote for a person than a political party,"" Rep. Barbara Gronemus, D-Whitehall, said.
Nichols noted that economic populism combines with conservative morality in that area. He said the Mississippi River corridor tends to send a particular kind of leftist representative to state offices because the issue of abortion is very important there.
""Over the last 50 years you've seen an interesting pattern where that region has sent a number of pro-life Democrats to the legislature,"" he said.
The person who arguably had the single greatest influence on Wisconsin politics, LaFollette, had a message that resonated with those along the Mississippi River. Dresang said LaFollette's appeal struck a strong chord in the Christian socialist regions of Wisconsin's southwest.
""They were really ripe for the Progressive Movement, the anti-machine vision and goals of Bob LaFollette,"" he said. ""And that is a legacy that continues today.""
Enduring legacies
LaFollette's son, Philip, served as the only Progressive governor of Wisconsin from 1935 to 1939. He is joined by 12 Democrats, 30 Republicans and one Whig in Wisconsin's catalogue of governors.
Currently, the state has a Democrat in its highest office, two Democrats in the U.S. Senate, an evenly split contingent in the U.S. House of Representatives, a solidly Republican state Legislature and a status as swing state. Wisconsin has voted for Richard Nixon for president in 1960 and Michael Dukakis in 1988.
Its regions have rich histories ranging from radical liberalism to robust conservativism. Because of its complex political story, Wisconsin's politics make a balanced state.
Risser put it best when he said simply, ""It's an even state, no question about it.""
