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Wisconsin State Senate elections, 2010
 Lt. Gov Attorney General Secretary of State State Senate State House |
Elections for the office of Wisconsin's State Senate were held in Wisconsin on November 2, 2010.
The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was July 13, 2010. The primary election day was September 14, 2010.
Out of the 17 districts up for election, incumbents ran for re-election in 14 of them. The incumbent was defeated in four of the races -- all Democratic seats.
In the 2010 elections, Republicans won four seats to gain control of the Senate. In 2011, recall elections resulted in Democrats gaining two seats.
- See also: Wisconsin State Senate and State legislative elections, 2010
November 2 General Election Results
The following candidates won election on November 2, 2010:
Majority control
- See also: Partisan composition of state senates
Heading into the November 2 election, the Democratic Party held the majority in the Wisconsin State Senate:
| Wisconsin State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 1, 2010 | After the 2010 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 18 | 14 | |
| Republican Party | 15 | 19 | |
| Total | 33 | 33 | |
Campaign contributions
This chart shows how many candidates ran for state senate in Wisconsin in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in state senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests. All figures come from Follow The Money.[1]
| Year | Number of candidates | Total contributions |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 41 | $4,251,736 |
| 2008 | 42 | $4,912,818 |
| 2006 | 52 | $4,536,726 |
| 2004 | 55 | $4,324,018 |
| 2002 | 51 | $3,014,637 |
In 2010, the candidates for state senate raised a total of $4,251,736 in campaign contributions. The top 10 donors were:[2]
| Donor | Amount |
|---|---|
| Public Fund | $56,785 |
| Galloway, Pamela G | $45,131 |
| Elmer, Monk | $34,248 |
| Richard, Rick | $30,675 |
| Hutchison, David E | $17,699 |
| Cmte to Elect a Republican Senate | $17,226 |
| Northwestern Mutual Life | $16,000 |
| State Senate Democratic Cmte of Wisconsin | $15,767 |
| Deutsch, Dane A | $11,657 |
| United Transportation Union | $11,000 |
Incumbency
Unopposed incumbents
One incumbent (8%) faced no competition in the November 2 general election.
- 0 Democratic incumbents faced no November challenger.
- 1 Republican incumbent faced no November challenger
Primary challenges
One incumbent faced competition in the September 14 primary. That incumbent, Jeffrey Plale lost to his challenger, Chris Larson.
- District 7: Incumbent Democrat Jeffrey Plale
Retiring incumbents
Three incumbent senators did not run for re-election, while 14 (83%) ran for re-election. Of the 3 incumbents who did not run for re-election, one was a Democrat and two were Republicans.
Incumbents who retired were:
- District 1: Incumbent Republican Alan Lasee
- District 15: Incumbent Democrat Judy Robson
- District 33: Incumbent Republican Theodore Kanavas
Qualifications
Section 6 of Article 4 of the Wisconsin Constitution states, "No person shall be eligible to the legislature who shall not have resided one year within the state, and be a qualified elector in the district which he may be chosen to represent."
List of candidates
| Partisan dominance in state senates heading into the 2010 state legislative elections |
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| 2010 State senate elections
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| AL • AK • AR • AR • CA • CO • CT • DE • FL • GA • HI • ID • IL • IN • IA • KY • ME • MD • MA • MI • MN • MO • MT • NE • NV • NH • NY • NC • ND • OH • OK • OR • PA • RI • SD • TN • TX • UT • VT • WA • WV • WI • WY |
| Parties with candidates |
| Impact of term limits |
| Successful challengers |
| Defeated incumbents |
| State house elections |
| State senate elections |
| State legislative elections |
District 1
September 14 Democratic primary:
- Monk Elmer (D)
- Monk Elmer (D)
September 14 GOP primary:
- Dave Hutchison (R) 7,752
- Frank Lasee (R) 12,602
- Jon Soyring (R) 1,802
Note: Incumbent Alan Lasee (R) did not run for re-election.
November 2 General election candidates:
- Monk Elmer 28,800
- Frank Lasee 43,415
District 3
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Tim Carpenter (D) Incumbent Carpenter was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2002.
- Tim Carpenter (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
November 2 General election candidates:
- Tim Carpenter 23,401
- Annette Miller Krznarich 14,796
District 5
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Jim Sullivan (D) Incumbent Sullivan was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2006.
- Jim Sullivan (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Leah Vukmir (R) (Vukmir has served in the Wisconsin Assembly since 2002.)
- Leah Vukmir (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Jim Sullivan 33,702
- Leah Vukmir 36,852
District 7
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Chris Larson (D) 7,962
- Jeffrey Plale (D) 5,148 Incumbent Plale was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2003.
- Chris Larson (D) 7,962
Across the country in 2010, state senate elections were held in 43 states. 1,167 state senate seats were at stake. In all 1,167 state senate districts with an election in 2010, 19 challengers (12 Democrats and 7 Republicans) defeated an incumbent state senator. Larson was one of the 12 Democratic challengers who defeated an incumbent Democratic state senator.
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Jess Ripp (R)
- Jess Ripp (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Chris Larson 37,165
- Jess Ripp 27,772
District 9
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Jason Borden (D)
- Jason Borden (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Joe Leibham (R) Incumbent Leibham was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2002.
- Joe Leibham (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Jason Borden 16,775
- Joe Leibham 45,663
District 11
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- L D Rockwell (D)
- L D Rockwell (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Neal Kedzie (R) Incumbent Kedzie was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2002.
- Neal Kedzie (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- L D Rockwell 17,955
- Neal Kedzie 55,121
District 13
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Dwayne Block (D)
- Dwayne Block (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Scott Fitzgerald (R) Incumbent Fitzgerald was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1994.
- Scott Fitzgerald (R)
Independent candidate:
- Vittorio Spadaro (Independent)
- Vittorio Spadaro (Independent)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Dwayne Block 19,230
- Scott Fitzgerald 44,529
- Vittorio Spadaro 2,071
District 15
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Tim Cullen (D)
- Tim Cullen (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Rick Richard (R)
- Rick Richard (R)
Note: Incumbent Judy Robson (D) did not run for re-election.
November 2 General election candidates:
- Tim Cullen 31,918
- Rick Richard 22,181
District 17
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Carol Beals (D)
- Carol Beals (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Dale Schultz (R) Incumbent Schultz was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1991.
- Dale Schultz (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Carol Beals 21,580
- Dale Schultz 36,122
District 19
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- No Democratic candidates filed to run for this seat.
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Michael Ellis (R) Incumbent Ellis was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1998.
- Michael Ellis (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Michael Ellis 49,179
District 21
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- John Lehman (D) Incumbent Lehman was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2006.
- John Lehman (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Bob Gulan (R) 3,475
- Van Wanggaard (R) 13,864
November 2 General election candidates:
- John Lehman 28,930
- Van Wanggaard 32,036
District 23
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Pat Kreitlow (D) Incumbent Kreitlow was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2007.
- Pat Kreitlow (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Terry Moulton (R)
- Terry Moulton (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Pat Kreitlow 27,375
- Terry Moulton 32,448
District 25
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Robert Jauch (D) Incumbent Jauch was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1986
- Robert Jauch (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Dane Deutsch (R)
- Dane Deutsch (R)
November 2 General election candidates:
- Robert Jauch 31,437
- Dane Deutsch 29,854
District 27
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Jon Erpenbach (D) Incumbent Erpenbach was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1998.
- Jon Erpenbach (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Tom Lamberson (R) 3,002
- Kurt Schlicht (R) 7,540
- Tony Wickersham (R) 2,364
November 2 General election candidates:
- Jon Erpenbach 51,742
- Kurt Schlicht 31,909
District 29
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Russ Decker (D) Incumbent Decker was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1990.
- Russ Decker (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Jimmy Boy Edming (R) 4,342
- Pam Galloway (R) 10,355
November 2 General election candidates:
- Russ Decker 29,742
- Pam Galloway 32,640
District 31
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- Kathleen Vinehout (D) Incumbent Vinehout was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2006.
- Kathleen Vinehout (D)
- September 14 GOP primary:
November 2 General election candidates:
- Kathleen Vinehout 30,314
- Ed Thompson 29,911
A recount request was filed with the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board on November 9, 2010[3]. The recount was final on December 1, 2010[4].
District 33
- September 14 Democratic primary:
- No Democratic candidates filed to run for the District 33 seat.
- September 14 GOP primary:
- Tim Dietrich (R) 8,562
- Rich Zipperer (R) 24,208 (Zipperer was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2006.)
Note: Incumbent Theodore Kanavas (R) did not run for re-election.
November 2 General election candidates:
- Rich Zipperer 62,732
See also
- Wisconsin State Senate
- Wisconsin State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2010
- Primary election dates in 2010
External links
- Wisconsin Government Accountability Board Official General Election 2010 Results
- Official GAB primary results
- JSOnline, "Fall 2010 primary election results," September 14, 2010
- Final official list of candidates on the primary ballot
- List of primary election offices up for Wisconsin State Senate
- Wisconsin Democratic Party's list of 2010 state senate candidates
- Wisconsin Republican Party's list of 2010 state senate candidates
- Project Vote Smart list of candidates for Wisconsin State Senate in the November 2, 2010 election
Footnotes
- ↑ Follow the Money, Wisconsin
- ↑ Follow the Money: "Wisconsin Senate 2010 Campaign Contributions"
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "November 2010 General Election Recounts"
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Notice of Recount and Petition for the Office of the 31st State Senate District," November 9, 2010
