Democrats will attempt to gain control of the Wisconsin state Assembly this election season, having earned more campaign dollars this summer than their Republican opponents.
According to Mike McCabe, executive director of the advocacy group the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Assembly Republicans usually raise more money than the Democrats.
McCabe said money alone will never decide who controls the Assembly, but it is an extremely important factor.
Democrats feel they have a really good shot at winning the Assembly and holding on to the Senate,"" McCabe said.
Leaders of the Democratic Party have focused on a handful of closely contested races, according to McCabe, and Democrats are running aggressively in more places than they have before.
""They're feeling like its time to go on the offense,"" McCabe said.
Elections in Assembly districts that usually have the narrowest margin of victory is where control of the Assembly will be decided, he said.
In the past the Assembly followed a socially conservative agenda, but the house would be pro-choice with a socially liberal agenda if the Democrats win the majority, according to McCabe.
He said a socially liberal agenda means fewer taxes on the individual and higher taxes for businesses. There would also be more emphasis on environmental protection rather than deregulation.
""There [would] be a big shift in how the Assembly does business,"" McCabe said.
Money is never the whole story; the key to winning an election is always door-to-door contact and hard work, according to state Rep. Terese Berceau, D-Madison.
If the Democrats win the majority, school financing is going to be dealt with and not ignored by the Assembly agenda, Berceau said.
""[The Assembly agenda] will depend on who [the Democrats] elect as their leader and how far to the left they want to take the state,"" said John Murray, spokesperson for Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem.
According to UW-Madison political science professor John Coleman, the effects of a president's popularity can filter down to the state level.
""Republicans are suffering under a weight of an unpopular president, and that has led more support and dollars to go to Democrats,"" Coleman said.
He said Democratic supporters are excited about their party's chance of winning, which has led to more campaign contributions.
""The fact that they have a better chance to win is what generated a lot of contributions in the first place,"" Coleman said.
