Voter turnout for Tuesday's midteram elections was relatively high at nearly 50 percent, meeting the Government Accountability Board's original predictions.
""Based on the feedback we have received and media reports, this was a successful election,"" Kevin Kennedy, the state's chief election officer said. ""I consider it a successful election when most voters have a pleasant experience and remember its outcome rather than any issues at the polling place.""
The 2010 election drew more of the voting-age population than any other midterm election since 1974, except for the 2006 election when voter turnout was 51 percent.
UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin said although the overall voter turnout was high for a midterm election, Democratic voter participation dropped off significantly since the 2008 election.
""I think that is reflective of both differential turnout, that the republicans were more motivated to get out to the polls,"" Franklin said, ""and secondly, some people, most notably independents, switching from Democratic to Republican support this year.""
However, similar to the Democratic participation drop-off since 2008, Franklin said Republicans could have trouble maintaining voter turnout in 2012.
""It's very difficult to maintain the enthusiasm of an insurgent movement, and so while I think the Tea Party deserves credit for being an extremely effective citizen movement this year, whether it can sustain itself and those voters back to the polls next time is a very open question,"" Franklin said.
