Walker Claims 68 Percent of Vote in Muskego

Good night for Walker

Even though Governor Scott Walker didn't have a true Republican opponent to put him onto the ballot (an admitted 'fake candidate' Arthur Kohl-Riggs appeared as his challenger), voters took the time to reiterate their intentions from November of 2010 and gave him another victory on Tuesday.

Walker's 5,113 votes in Muskego's election represented 97.4 percent of the Republican primary votes, and 67.9 percent in comparison to 20 percent by the closest competitor on the Democrat side, Tom Barrett, who won the statewide race. Kathleen Falk, who had been campaigning for months before Barrett decided to throw his hat back in the ring, came in a distant third, garnering only 8.9 percent.

Turnout turns heads

More impressive perhaps was the percentage of voters who exceeded turnout in April, posting a 47 percent showing across the city and as high as 52 in District 1. All day polling locations reported a brisk turnout, but it seemed no one had expected the final numbers at the end of the day.

"I can't imagine what it's going to be like next month, said Carol, a pollworker from District 1. "We are going to be really busy then."

She thought November could see even higher numbers, but others felt the personal nature that this election, and its emotional lead up, took on drove voters on both sides to the polls.

Voters, clerks struggle with a different ballot, procedures

Voters had some difficulty with the ballot, with many of them over-voting by choosing more than one gubernatorial candidate across parties. The instruction of 'one vote, one office' wasn't always heeded, apparently.

In addition, tallying at the end of the evening in the Muskego clerk's office revealed that the theory of direct reporting to the Government Accountability Board was easier than the reality. After the and Waukesha County Clerk , clerks from every municipality were told to report to the state directly.

"The state's system doesn't allow you to review your totals after you've entered them, so it's definitely more time consuming than we had expected," deputy clerk Jill Blenski explained.

The totals for the city (unofficial counts) were as follows:

Governor - Republican

Scott Walker - 5,118
Arthur-Kohl-Riggs - 133

Governor - Democrat

Tom Barrett - 1,516
Kathleen Falk - 671
Doug LaFollette - 44
Kathleen Vinehout - 33
Gladys Huber (also considered a 'fake candidate') - 11

Lieutenant Governor - Democrat

Isaac Weix - 1,440
Mahlon Mitchell - 1,170 (Statewide winner)
Ira Robins - 759

The rematch between Walker and Barrett in the general recall will take place on Tuesday, June 5. Rebecca Kleefisch, Lt. Governor, was unopposed in the primary but will also face off against Mahlon Mitchell on that ballot.