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The Democratic Strategist

Political Strategy for a Permanent Democratic Majority

Dems Win Final Two Wisconsin Recall Elections

So the Wisconsin Recall Saga of 2011 ended last night with two Democratic state senators hanging onto their seats by relatively comfortable margins. The more vulnerable of the two, Jim Holperin, whose district gave Scott Walker 57% of its vote in 2010, won 54% in the recall election.
In the end, Democrats picked up two seats; narrowed the Republican margin in that chamber to 17-16; and threw a pretty significant scare into Walker (who could face a recall of his own in 2012) and his legislative friends.
Given the circumstances, in which state law prohibited recalls of legislators elected in the GOP wave election of 2010, it was an impressive undertaking with results that fell just short of making major history. Indeed, if the tactics and strategies tested in Wisconsin are deployed successfully by progressives in other states in 2012, the effort may yet make history.

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