Wisconsin Recall Thread
GOP HOLDS SENATE BY 1 SEAT

News 3 calls district 8 for Darling.

Above the fold update:

Update [ace]: The GOP expects to hold Hopper (ahead by 2) and Darling (down by... eight), and only lose one.

District 2 called for the Republican. That's one.

District 10 called for GOP. That's two holds.

District 14 for the GOP. That's three. One more and they hold the Senate. But the other races are either trending Democrat or getting really close.

The AP calls SD-32 for Democrats.

Looks like the Democrats are going to pick up District 18. They did. It's actually amazing this race was this close considering the incumbent cheated on his wife with a 25 year old intern and basically moved out of his district.

It's all coming down to SD-8 and the Democrat is leading there at the moment. Darling, the GOP incumbent, is now up by about 2,600 votes. They might hold on after all.

Original Post:
Polls close at 9pm eastern.

Via @NathanWurtzel, here are the live results.

Here's a rundown of what's going on what to look for.

As six Republican state senators fight for their political lives, first-term Republican governor Scott Walker’s fiscal agenda faces an uncertain future. Today’s half-dozen recall elections jeopardize the GOP’s senate majority. That bloc is the keystone to the governor’s power and was crucial in passing his collective-bargaining reforms and budget cuts earlier this year. Now, thanks to the petitioning union workers who forced the elections, Democrats have an opportunity to pick up the three seats they need to take control of the upper chamber, where Republicans currently hold a 19–14 advantage. Next week, two Democrats are up for recall, but after Sen. Dave Hansen, a Democrat, easily beat a Republican recall effort last month, both parties view the six GOP races as the most important contests of the summer.

Short version...if the Democrats pickup 3 seats they get control of the state Senate. They won't be able to undo the labor bill but they'll stop any more of Scott Walker's reforms.

Here are the way the races look going into today's vote.

there are two Republicans — Sen. Dan Kapanke and Sen. Randy Hopper — who are considered the most vulnerable. Kapanke, especially, has been written off by GOP insiders, since he represents a heavily Democratic district. Hopper, for his part, has been plagued by personal problems — his messy divorce and affair with a young Republican aide have been fodder for the state’s papers.

But there are two Republicans, Walker noted, who will probably win — Sen. Rob Cowles and Sen. Sheila Harsdorf, who are “looking reasonably good, although they’re all very tight.” That leaves two Republicans who must both win if the party is to keep control of the senate: “I think it will boil down to [Alberta] Darling and to Luther Olsen,” the governor predicted. In the final hours,

Darling is District 8.

Olsen is District 14.

Cowles is District 2.

Harsdorf is District 10.

Hopper is District 18.

Kapanke is District 32.

The Walker/GOP reforms have saved school districts and taxpayers millions of dollars. If enough voters in Wisconsin want to punish legislators who made that possible and see that money going to unions, well, they'll get what they deserve.

Added: Via Amanda Carpenter, here's another results link in case the first craps out.

More: Now it can be told! "Sky Isn't Falling"

Gov. Scott Walker's so-called tools will help at least some local governments deal with cuts in state aid. Tough choices and pain remain, but give the governor some credit.

That's from tomorrow's Journal Sentential. Now that the voting is over, it's ok to admit this.

Via John McCormack.

Al Sharpton: We Much Totally Much Be Committed. I much a dream. We much. We much.

GOP HOLDS SENATE BY 1 SEAT&bodytext= News 3 calls district 8 for Darling. Above the fold update: Update [ace]: The GOP expects to hold Hopper (ahead by 2) and Darling (down by... eight), and only lose one. District 2 called for the Republican. That's one....&topic=world_news"> posted by DrewM. at 12:33 AM

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