Two Thoughts On What Happened in Wisconsin, Via Patchwork Nation
Over at PBS NewsHour, there’s have extensive coverage of yesterday’s Wisconsin recall elections. Patchwork Nation has broken down the numbers, and has spotted two big trends.
1) Counties where public employees live are shifting away from supporting Republicans. That’s because Wisconsin’s Republican governor, Scott Walker, has led the drive to weaken collective bargaining rights. Says Patchwork: “If Democrats can win bigger portions of the electorate in those counties in 2012, it would greatly increase their chances for success.”
2) Monied suburbs around Milwaukee may be tilting even more sharply to Republican candidates. According to Patchwork, “It may be that the Monied Burbs are the kinds of places where GOP efforts to strike at public sector unions could win voters. There are many well-paid private sector employers here. Many of them have seen a lot of cuts in benefits over the past decade and they may not be pleased with the benefits public sector workers receive.”
Patchwork’s conclusion is that change may be in the air, both for Wisconsin, and for the nation in 2012. And those changes could certainly be felt in our region.