Debate shifts to when, not if, to recall Gov. Scott Walker
Post by Emily Mills on 7/15/2011 10:45am
For months now the battle cry from those protesting at the Capitol and driving the recall efforts against Republican state senators has been to also recall Gov. Scott Walker as soon as his first year in office is up - officially the time at which signatures can begin to be collected for that goal.
In theory that would put the election to recall the governor in the spring of 2012. Recently, however, Democratic Party of Wisconsin chairman Mike Tate has made several statements to media laying out the organization's support of a Walker recall election in November of next year.
The insistence on a later Walker recall has raised hackles among various progressive activists and groups who believe in moving quickly to take advantage of the momentum of this year and Walker's currently very low approval ratings.
When asked why the DPW was setting a slightly different time table, Tate released the following statement to dane101:
As with the recall of the six Republican senators, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin will be committed to listening to the people when it comes to the recall of Scott Walker in 2012.
But our priority right now is the historic recall elections as a way to stop the runaway Walker agenda.
Only after victory there will we be positioned to have the discussion about not merely the recall of Scott Walker, but about what strategy will have the highest likelihood of his defeat.
This will be part of the discussion comprising the entire progressive community, which we will be able to have in full only after winning victory in August.
As the party OF the people, rest assured that the Democratic Party of Wisconsin will listen TO the people when it comes to our great shared goal of stopping Scott Walker's assault ON the people.
Emily Mills
Editor-At-Large
Emily Mills is Editor-At-Large for Dane101, as well as Editor of Our Lives Magazine. She is also a freelance writer, photographer, actor, and musician (drummer and singer in local band Little Red Wolf). Originally from several states up and down the Midwest Emily has called Madison home since 2000. Contact her at
Deadlines and dates
Submitted by Mad.Irish.Frog on Fri, 2011-07-15 11:48.
Hi Emily, thanks for the report! However, I think your prediction of the election being held in "spring of 2012" is overly optimistic. I'm basing a lot of my dates on an Atlantic piece by Abe Sauer titled ""Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Wisconsin Recall Elections", but please let me know if I'm making any math errors or have missed something.
By my count the deadlines are:
Gov. Walker must be in office 1 year to recall; he was sworn in on Jan 3, 2011
60 days to collect signatures - so Jan 3 to March 2 2012
~2 months for the GAB to certify the signatures, cert on May 2, 2012?
6 weeks between certification and the primary election, Tue, June 19, 2012.
4 weeks between primary and general recall election, Tue, July 17, 2012
I suppose they could get together the signatures somewhat faster, especially since United Wisconsin already has 190,608 validated voters, but I really don't think the GAB is going to move any faster on 540,208 than it did on the 199K signatures they had to deal with in the 9 recalls this year. For example, the Kapanke recall signatures took 2 months to certify. And really, signatures ought to take that long to validate and fight their way through the courts.
I don't know if the GOP can get enough signatures to force a fake primary, but I'm betting they do based on the number of people that came out and voted for candidates that had no desire to actually win a race as well as the handful of Democratic Senators currently up for recall. And I finally got an answer from Abe Sauer at the Atlantic; the GAB has 18 days to certify the results of the general recall election, pushing the actual swearing in of a new Governor to sometime in mid-August at the earliest. I can see how Mike Tate would want to budge it a couple of months to coincide with the November elections.
Small error in your calculation
Submitted by leftilicious on Fri, 2011-07-15 12:26.
The recall can't happen until Jan 3, but I'm pretty sure we could start collecting signatures 60 days prior to that. Which would be early November.
Still, all the certifications and frivolous court challenges and a fake primary all will add up to an early summer election at the earliest.
I am of the opinion that President Obama will be campaigning hard in Wisconsin all summer. Wouldn't it be nice to have our recall candidate tagging along with that? And turnout is going to be high in the presidential election anyway, especially among Obama supporters. Low turnout in a June or July election could very well kill us in a recall.
But Mike is right - we're getting ahead of ourselves. First, we need to take back the Senate. If we do that, we take away Walker's rubber stamp and we limit the damage he can do between now and the day when we do kick him to the curb.l
GAB on dates
Submitted by Jesse Russell on Fri, 2011-07-15 12:49.
GAB on the dates:
"Like all other public officials, the Governor of Wisconsin is not eligible for recall until he or she has served at least one year in the current term of office. Recall petitions cannot be circulated until early November, 2011, and cannot be offered for filing until January 3, 2012."
Corrected!
Submitted by Mad.Irish.Frog on Fri, 2011-07-15 13:04.
Thanks! Now Emily's numbers make more sense. If we assume it'll take 2 months for the GAB to certify the signatures that puts the primary recall election on April 17th and the general recall election on Tuesday, May 15.
/I think.
Yes, that, what Jesse posted
Submitted by Emily Mills on Fri, 2011-07-15 16:02.
Yes, that, what Jesse posted from the GAB. :)
Tate's argument?
Submitted by Mad.Irish.Frog on Tue, 2011-07-19 18:22.
But would the courts move the recall general election to the nearest big election date? Because that would be in April, and would coincide with the GOP presidential primary, when few dems would be out to vote while the GOP would be enthused because they have a real race?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/exclusive-top-wisconsin-dems-increasingly-worried-that-gop-will-protect-scott-walker-from-recall/2011/03/03/gIQAEkaCMI_blog.html
Highly descriptive post, I
Submitted by Winter Weather (not verified) on Thu, 2012-12-20 23:37.
Highly descriptive post, I enjoyed that bit. Will there be a part 2? Winter Weather
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