[ad_1]
Democrat Tony Evers ousted Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Tuesday, denying the polarizing Republican and one-time presidential candidate to a third term and succeeding where he had failed in his previous attempts, including a 2012 recall.
Evers' victory is a monumental win for Democrats and a steep fall for Walker, who was just a few years ago and was seen as an early front-runner in the GOP primary for president. When Walker Liked Out of the Presidential Race, Wisconsin.
Walker had promised if he won the third term.
Evers, 67, a teacher and state superintendent since 2009, used his folksy, nondescript personality to his advantage in the campaign, using words like "jeepers" and "holy mackerel" while arguing that voters were tired of divisiveness and yearned for more collegial politics.
The win gives Democrats a boost after President Donald Trump narrowly carried Wisconsin by less than 1 point in 2016. It also puts Evers in position to dismantle much of what Walker and Republicans did over the past eight years, including rolling back portions of the law that effectively collective collective bargaining for public workers.
Democratic voters were ecstatic about ousting Walker.
"Tony Evers provides us with a new direction that a lot of people want to go," said Danielle Moehring, 27, a scientist from Madison.
Moehring said she thought anger over Trump was motivating people to "come out of the woodwork," get involved and vote.
Ellen Martin, a 67-year-old retired occupational therapist from Madison, said she voted for Evers because he will "save our state, especially the environment, education."
Martin Wisconsin said Wisconsin were tired of Walker after eight years in office.
"I never liked him," Martin said. "He's shamed our state, embarrassed our state, ruined our politics."
Evers, a cancer survivor, campaigning on supporting the national health care law and its guarantees of coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. He also promised to cut middle class taxes by 10 percent, paid for by all-purpose remediation and agriculture tax credit program Walker enacted. Evers is also open to raising the tax rate for road repair and construction, although it has not released a specific plan.
Walker, the 51-year-old son of a Baptist preacher, swept into office in 2010, part of a Republican wave that saw the GOP take over control of the state Legislature as well. With Republican partners in the Statehouse, Walker pushed through a law that effectively ended collective bargaining for teachers and most public workers.
Anger over that led to the failed 2012 recall election. Walker's stature among conservatives and national profile skyrocketed after the union and the passage of a host of Republican priorities, including making Wisconsin a right-to-work state; cutting taxes by $ 8 billion; implementing a vote ID law; expanding the private school voucher program statewide; freezing tuition at the University of Wisconsin; rejecting federal Medicaid expansion money under the Affordable Care Act; and restricting access to abortion.
Walker ran for president in 2015, but dropped out before being cast, out of money and down in the polls. His vote rating in Wisconsin dropped to its lowest levels.
Last year, working closely with the Trump administration, Walker signed a deal with Taiwan-based Foxconn to build a screen in the state that could result in $ 10 billion in investments and 13,000 jobs. He's pointed to that of the state's economic recovery.
Evers wants to renegotiate the deal, saying the potential $ 4 trillion in local taxes for the Taiwan-based company is too much. Evers has also vowed, on his first day in office, to withdraw Wisconsin from a federal lawsuit seeking repeal of the Affordable Care Act.
___
Follow Scott Bauer on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sbauerAP
[ad_2]
Source link
