Coming off a strong victory in the recall effort in 2012, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker continues the fight in easily the most difficult battle to date in his efforts to secure reelection to the governor’s mansion.
Walker defied the odds in 2010 by winning as a Tea Party-aligned Republican in a decidedly blue state, then bested the organized efforts of union leaders around the state and country in passing key collective bargaining reforms, and finally beat back well-financed efforts to take him down in the middle of his term, reports Foxnews‘ Mike Tobin.
So, why is Walker having such a tough go of it this time, in a cycle that is increasingly the resembling the 2010 Republican wave? Mordecai Lee, political science professor at the University of Wisconsin, explains that Walker’s repeated victories has cemented a class of opposition that is hell-bent on taking him down: “They are essentially the 47 percent who will vote for the devil, they don’t care who is on the ballot, they’ll vote against Scott Walker.”
The latest Marquette University poll put Walker at a statistical dead-heat with his Democrat opponent Mary Burke, each with 46% and a slim margin of 5% undecided.
However, an odd twist in the cycle could break against Burke and spell victory for Walker. A lower court had recently issued an injunction on Wisconsin’s voter ID law which mandates that voters must present an ID when voting to verify that they are eligible. A federal appeals court removed the injunction this week, thus giving way for the law to be enforced.
With Republican turnout expected to be higher and with little to no chance of voter fraud, this development could prove to be the edge Walker needs to pull through.
