Democrats take traditionally conservative Wisconsin district that Trump won by 17 points
The loss of the Republican-friendly district is another midterm blow for US President Donald Trump
A Democrat has been elected to represent a traditionally conservative Wisconsin Senate district where voters overwhelmingly supported President Donald Trump in 2016, in an upset that Democrats suggest could lead to more Republican losses in the state.
Patty Schachtner’s victory in the 10th Senate District could be a sign of hope for Democrats in the state, who have been pushed to the brink of irrelevancy after seven years of Republican control of both legislative houses and the governor’s office.
Schachtner, who entered the race in northwestern Wisconsin as the clear underdog, said her win suggests voters are tired of negative politics.
People sent a message tonight we don’t want to be negative any more
“People sent a message tonight: we don’t want to be negative any more,” she said. “Change it up. I ran a positive campaign. My message has always been be kind, be considerate and we need to help people when they’re down.”
Schachtner’s victory does not change the balance of power in the Senate. Republicans will go into the fall campaign season with an 18-14 majority and one vacancy.
But Schachtner said the victory “certainly could be” a bad sign for Republicans elsewhere in the state this year.
Democrats have already made big gains elsewhere, including picking up 15 seats in the Virginia state House in November, and in Alabama, where Doug Jones captured a US Senate seat last month.
In the past two weeks, high-profile Republicans have passed up Senate races in North Dakota and Minnesota that were thought to be winnable seats.
Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty cited the tough outlook as one reason for skipping a run to replace former Democratic Senator Al Franken.
Wisconsin Democratic Party chair Martha Laning followed Schachtner’s win by posting on Facebook that a “change is coming!!!”
Representative Adam Jarchow tweeted his concession to Schachtner late Tuesday evening, when returns were nearly complete across five northwestern Wisconsin counties and Schachtner was leading by more than 1,600 votes.
The district has trended red for years and every county in the district voted for Trump in 2016. Republican Sheila Harsdorf held the Senate seat for 16 years before she resigned in November to become Governor Scott Walker’s agriculture secretary.
Jarchow is in the middle of his third term representing the area in the Assembly and had built a formidable base. But Democrats banked that anti-Trump backlash could even the playing field. Republicans sensed it, too.
Conservative groups Americans for Prosperity and the Republican State Leadership Committee both ran ads supporting Jarchow and Republican state Senator Leah Vukmir, who is running for the US Senate, travelled to the district to campaign for him.
It was not enough, even in a district that Barack Obama lost by 6 points in 2012 and Hillary Clinton lost by 17 to Trump.
Schachtner, the St Croix County medical examiner and a Somerset school board member, said for now she is focused on serving her new constituents.
