Top 10 Wisconsin political stories of 2021 (based on what you, the readers, read)
2021 was another big year in Wisconsin politics. Sen. Ron Johnson said some things. Voters elected a new state superintendent. Gov. Tony Evers and Republicans clashed over mask mandates. Michael Gableman threatened to jail the mayors of Madison and Green Bay. Here are 10 political stories you, the readers, checked out in droves.
(10) updates to this series since
Since the start of the outbreak, Gov. Tony Evers has issued multiple public health emergencies and a series of related orders.
Sen. Ron slammed the impeachment over the weekend as “vindictive and divisive,” and possibly a “diversionary operation” by Democrats to distract from security lapses at the U.S. Capitol.
"I wouldn’t run if I don’t think I could win," said Johnson, who is undecided on a re-election bid.
The board had previously not required masks in schools after some in the public voiced opposition.
With a new order announced, Republicans may be forced to start the process all over again to vote down the governor's emergency order and accompanying mask mandate, but the most likely outcome appears to be an eventual court decision.
Fort McCoy officials acknowledge there were initial problems with food supply, but that and other issues are being addressed.
The idea is in its infancy and all options, including declining to pursue anything, are on the table.
Gableman has asked the court, which plans to take up the matter on Dec. 22, to compel the two mayors to meet with him.
Deborah Kerr said she has also voted for Republicans and tells GOP audiences on the campaign trail for the officially nonpartisan race that she is a "pragmatic Democrat."
Limbaugh died Wednesday at 70.
The governor's comments come about a week after Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul said he supported strengthening Wisconsin's bail system.
Judge Valerie Bailey-Rihn said she would not hold Vos in contempt of court, as requested by liberal watchdog group American Oversight, which has sought contractor's records related to Gableman's investigation.
The latest round of subpoenas come as Dane County Circuit Court Judge Rhonda Lanford weighs whether or not Gableman has the authority to demand a private, in-person interview with Wisconsin elections administrator Meagan Wolfe.
An attorney for Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich is asking a judge to impose sanctions on Michael Gableman, saying the election investigator has made incorrect statements and should take out full-page newspaper ads to correct the record.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who has called for more gun regulation, is likely to veto the two bills if they reach his desk.
While Duffy had not indicated any formal plans to run for office, Trump in October called on the retired congressman to enter Wisconsin's 2022 gubernatorial race.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos wants the investigation he ordered into the 2020 election to conclude by the end of the month, even as legal fights over subpoenas issued to mayors and the state's top elections official remain unresolved.
“As I go, I want to make it perfectly clear that no one has forced me out and politics has not played a role in my decision," Bernier said.
Johnson is up against a crowded Democratic field in a fight for a seat in the evenly split Senate.
Sen. Ron Johnson is up against a crowded Democratic field in a fight for a seat in the evenly split Senate.
Evers' $10.5 million on hand was announced hours after former Lt. Gov. and Republican gubernatorial candidate Rebecca Kleefisch reported Monday raising more than $3.3 million in the first four months of her campaign.
Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe estimated the request will take hundreds of staff hours and could cost "upwards of $100,000."
The case stems from one of three ongoing lawsuits filed by American Oversight over public records requests the organization filed last year. Attorneys for American Oversight have asked that Vos be held in contempt for not releasing the records sooner.
Wisconsinites think climate change needs to be addressed but want less government regulation otherwise.
In heavily gerrymandered Wisconsin, Gov. Tony Evers is the only resistance to state Republicans eager to reshape elections to aid their party.
After more than a decade in the Assembly, Steineke said he believes "the time has come to pass the torch and allow for others in our community to step forward and serve their neighbors.”
In a 4-3 decision last year, the court sided with Republicans' request that the next maps deviate as little as possible from the current GOP-drawn maps.
Other Democratic candidates say their fundraising increased the day after Johnson announced he's running again.
With the November election less than 10 months away, Wisconsin's gubernatorial race could prove to be historically expensive.
The organizations also seek a stay on Judge Michael Bohren's ruling to allow absentee ballot drop boxes to be used until after the April 5 spring election.
"I'm just having difficulty believing that Mr. Gableman did nothing for three months and received payment," the judge said.
The Republican-authored bills range from providing mandatory minimum sentences to people attending riots to creating a marketing campaign to boost law enforcement recruitment.
The discussion was advertised as an alternative perspective to the U.S. government’s response to COVID-19.
In a September 2020 letter to the Madison city clerk, Vos expressed support for ballot boxes.
The motion was filed just two days after a state Court of Appeals issued a stay against an earlier ruling barring the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in the state.
Despite being widely used in the state in 2020, absentee ballot drop boxes have come under fire from state Republicans seeking to limit or completely ban their use.
The 4-3 ruling comes as the state Supreme Court prepares to decide on how the state's next legislative and congressional district maps should be drawn.
A Nebraska-based voting machine company told the Republican-hired attorney leading an investigation into the 2020 presidential election in Wisconsin that it will not comply with subpoenas issued seeking a broad array of information.
Johnson said the proposed federal subsidy for child care is part of a Democratic push for more control over American children, who he said are subject to indoctrination in schools.
Evers' proposal stands in stark contrast to Republican leaders' plan to hold on to the projected funds until the next budget process, which begins in 2023. The Republican-led Legislature will need to approve of Evers' proposal in order for it to take effect.
The ruling came hours after the state's elections commission failed to take action Friday on Republicans' demand for emergency rules.
The proposed amendment comes within a year of Illinois choosing to completely eliminate cash bail and California doing away with it for people who could not afford it.
Citing her desire to pass the torch to the next generation of Democratic lawmakers, Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley announced Tuesday that she will not seek reelection.
The memo was sent a little over a month before 10 Wisconsin Republicans convened in the state Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign official-looking documents purporting that Trump had won the state.
The Supreme Court is already considering a pending lawsuit over the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in the state and late last week ruled that the boxes are allowed in the upcoming Feb. 15 primary.
Evers, a life-long educator, said children do not need state legislative encroachment on their learning environment.
Rural voters are moving rightward, political scientists say, but they're a voting bloc that the candidates cannot win without.
The Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy Coalition is voicing support for the state's embattled elections administrator, her staff and local election officials, even as Republicans have called for her resignation and pursued investigations into how the 2020 election was run.
"It's not like we don't have enough jobs here in Wisconsin," Sen. Ron Johnson said Saturday. "The biggest problem we have in Wisconsin right now is employers not being able to find enough workers."
In addition to 10 bills, the committee also discussed a joint resolution that would put before voters a constitutional amendment that would ban the use of private grant funding to administer elections.
In deposition transcripts filed with the court, both Vos and Fawcett indicated that it is standard practice to delete emails and text messages. The state Legislature is not legally required to retain records unless a public records request is filed.
Citing small business and social service staffing concerns, the Legislature’s budget committee approved measures Wednesday diverting millions to combat challenges in some of the state’s most affected areas, including child care and health care.
On a campaign website, Rep. Timothy Ramthun promised that he "will call for an independent full forensic physical cyber audit for the November 2022 election, beginning with my race regardless of its outcome."
In a 4-3 decision, the court denied a request to extend a previous stay allowing the use of drop boxes in the Feb. 15 primary through the April 5 spring election.
The Senate is also scheduled to vote Tuesday on bills restricting businesses from requiring proof of vaccination against COVID-19.
Republican candidate for governor Rebecca Kleefisch on Monday proposed shifting some election-related duties from the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission to the state Department of Justice.
Authorities evacuated the Wisconsin state Capitol building on Tuesday after fire alarms went off moments before a state Senate floor session was scheduled to begin.
Other bills that passed seek to block foreign influence at UW and allow concealed guns in school parking lots.
The commission's vote complies with a Friday ruling from the Wisconsin Supreme Court that the free-standing, mailbox-like drop boxes would no longer be allowed outside of local clerk's offices after Tuesday's spring primary.
Under the bill, data collectors and processors would be subject to $7,500 fines for violating Wisconsin consumers' demands regarding how their data is used.
An attorney for Gableman, who was hired by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, last summer at a cost of $676,000 to taxpayers, sent a letter Wednesday indicating the subpoenas should be considered "as moot."
Commission officials tried to answer ongoing questions regarding Wisconsin’s statewide voter registration database WisVote, while also addressing unfounded claims of fraud.
Republican National Committee officials toured Milwaukee on Thursday as they consider whether to hold the party's 2024 political convention there.
Gov. Tony Evers has pledged to veto any attempt to make voting more difficult.
From banning systemic racism instructions in schools to asserting parental rights in their kids' education, the bills exemplify conservative educational priorities going into the 2022 midterms.
"With this funding, we will be breaking ground this year in November," said Madison Public Market Foundation Board member Anne Reynolds.
The policy prohibiting the public and outside press led to a more relaxed atmosphere for those who attended, a UW-Madison student said.
The Outagamie County executive has been aggressively calling out Lt. Gov. Barnes for taking different positions on issues.
Gableman's review of the election has been marred by a slew of legal challenges to subpoenas issued by the former state Supreme Court justice.
Gableman's eight-month review of the 2020 election has been plagued by legal challenges against multiple subpoenas issued by the former state Supreme Court justice.
Vos in February said "it is unconstitutional for us to try to decertify the election. It is impossible. It cannot happen. I don't know how many times I have to say that.”
The maps would maintain Republican majorities in the Legislature but likely prevent them from claiming a veto-proof supermajority.
The measures allowing greater virtual access to criminal proceedings and addressing prison staff shortages are among 15 bills Evers signed into law Friday.
Donald Trump's endorsement and decisions by former Gov. Tommy Thompson, businessman Eric Hovde could shake up race.
The request for appellate review is the latest development in a five-month battle over how legislative and congressional maps will look for the next 10 years.
The governor said the restaurant tax relief bill would alleviate restaurant owners dealing with COVID-19 challenges as well as inflation, supply chain issues and workforce shortages.
The Senate and Assembly within a matter of seconds began and ended a special session Tuesday that Gov. Tony Evers ordered to address the state's $3.8 billion projected surplus.
The new contract maintains Gableman's existing budget, but does allow for the possibility of added funds if necessary to cover the costs of multiple lawsuits related to the probe, according to the agreement filed with the court.
Farrow rose from municipal politics to the state Legislature before becoming the state's first female lieutenant governor in 2001.
Bailey-Rihn also requested the release of deleted records from Vos' private email accounts or text messages, records Vos' attorney said he cannot produce.
The grants cap off a legislative session that saw Republicans scrutinize the criminal justice system and what they considered to be Evers' inability to address its shortcomings.
All six members of the commission, including Republican appointee Robert Spindell, who was one of the 10 Republicans who signed the documents, dismissed the complaint in a March 9 closed session.
Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said Wednesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 but not experiencing any symptoms.
Several GOP candidates view the seat as an opportunity to put in place more controls over state elections based on mounting Republican criticism over the 2020 election, despite no evidence of widespread fraud.
The rejection of Evers' legislative districts puts the issue of drawing maps back in the hands of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and will further delay the state's redistricting process, which state election officials say needs to be resolved in order to prepare for upcoming elections.
A judge on Wednesday again voiced frustration that Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos has not produced emails and text messages related to the investigation he ordered into the 2020 presidential election.
The language the Congressman objects to was identical to an executive order issued by former President Donald Trump.
While most of the bills are unlikely to become law, the debates and public hearings in GOP-controlled state legislative chambers have added fuel to the false claims that widespread fraud cost Trump reelection in 2020.
For two decades, Republicans have placed their nominating convention in swing states — North Carolina, Ohio and Florida — and that could favor Milwaukee over Nashville for the 2024 convention.
Prosecutors in Milwaukee charged Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs Board Chairman Curtis Schmitt Jr. on Jan. 23 with three felony counts of possession of child pornography.
A month after Russia invaded Ukraine, the comedy website that began in Madison has been willing to Go There, to look for humor in the most searing of stories even as it unfolds.
Thompson, a four-time governor, was the last Republican statewide candidate to win both Milwaukee and Dane counties.
Evers also vetoed a measure that would have allowed schools participating in voucher programs to adopt an early admission policy for 4-year-old kindergarten, 5-year-old kindergarten and first grade.
Evers argued that his 10-year legislative maps are the only maps before the court that comply with federal law outlawing discriminatory voting practices.
UW-Madison Law School associate professor Robert Yablon said the Wisconsin Supreme Court's most likely next step be a decision on which map it chooses.
Milwaukee voters will be electing the city's first new mayor in nearly 20 years on Tuesday.
Grothman voted against the original bill because it included language that he feared would allow the president to sanction countries prohibiting abortion and same-sex marriage.
Evers' 43 vetoes Friday also include education bills that sought to allow alternatives for diversity-focused courses and remove college employees' immunity from liability over alleged First Amendment violations.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers signed the bill, which creates a state licensing board for genetic counselors.
With his retirement, Hebl, 70, became the seventh Assembly Democrat to announce they won't be running for reelection.
Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, a Republican elected to four terms starting in the 1980s, announced Monday that he will not run for the office again this year.
Democrats called the measure "half-baked," saying the legislation doesn't go far enough to legalize a drug that most Wisconsinites want to see accessible and regulated.
In the state Senate, only one of Wisconsin's many anti-LGBTQ bills got a floor vote this past year. Some of the other ones didn't get a hearing.
In November, Republicans will seek to reclaim all levers of state government by taking back the governor’s seat from first-term incumbent Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
Gov. Tony Evers on Monday launched his first television ad buy of his reelection bid, a $3.5 million effort that marks an uptick in activity in the governor's race.
Wisconsin's 19th century abortion ban made unenforceable by Roe would not take hold until the majority opinion — if the court doesn't change course — is published. That could happen by this summer.
As Republicans praise the leaked preliminary opinion, Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Senate candidates are considering themselves the last line of defense against Republicans' fight to ban abortion nationwide.
A Democratic group said Wednesday it plans to spend at least $21 million on ads supporting Gov. Tony Evers, the latest sign of increased spending in battleground Wisconsin's governor's race.
As it stands, the state Supreme Court — a likely final venue for abortion litigation in Wisconsin — has more conservative-backed justices than liberal ones.
The only woman running for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin hoped to separate herself from her Democratic challengers on Thursday by being the first on the air with an ad hitting incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson for supporting the expected overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Of the 267 measures Gov. Tony Evers signed into law since the 2021-2022 session began, five received five or fewer recorded Democratic votes.
Calling the subsidy a rip-off for taxpayers, Nelson slammed Barnes for supporting the measure that Nelson says enriched the Lasry family.
Wisconsin Republicans are exploring a push to shift election oversight, including certification of results, from a bipartisan election commission to the Secretary of State's office.
The idea of increasing the court's size — which has been floating around Democratic camps and has led to an unsuccessful proposal in 2021 to increase the number of justices from nine to 13 — has split Democrats for years.
Robert Spindell has been an outspoken member of the bipartisan commission and supporter of the investigation into the 2020 election.
The system will provide people with updates of the kits from medical facilities, law enforcement agencies and crime laboratories, detailing the amount of time spent at each facility.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers vetoed two measures this year that would have permitted concealed carry licensees to bring guns on school grounds.
"I would like somebody who has a long track record of experience and somebody who, frankly, hasn't bought into hook, line and sinker the decertification argument that is absolutely impossible to achieve." Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said.
The order comes in response to shortages that have led some Wisconsinites to travel across state lines to find formula.
The Milwaukee Common Council on Wednesday unanimously approved an initiative that could move the city closer to winning the right to host the 2024 Republican National Convention.
Candidates file for 2022 midterms crucial to deciding Congress majority, political balance statewide
This will be the first election to use Wisconsin's new 10-year maps for the U.S. House and state legislative races. Republicans currently hold a 61-38 majority in the Assembly and a 21-12 majority in the Senate.
Wisconsin Democrats on Thursday announced a joint effort with national party leaders they are calling the largest midterm coordinated campaign in state history, with the goal of reelecting Gov. Tony Evers and defeating Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson.
Gun control measures are unlikely to pass in the Republican-controlled Legislature that has been more focused on loosening gun restrictions.
The Republican-controlled Legislature almost certainly will not follow Evers' wishes and will likely end the session in a matter of seconds.
U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman said June 3 that the plaintiffs' claim, "if it exists at all," would best be resolved before the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
At the request of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, the Wisconsin Parole Commission’s leader resigned Friday after mounting Republican criticism over the commission’s plans to parole a man who served less than 25 years of an 80-year sentence for stabbing his wife to death — parole that was later rescinded.
The program is launching as 96 gun incidents at schools nationwide resulted in 40 deaths and 78 injuries so far in 2022, according to the gun control advocacy organization Everytown for Gun Safety.
In 13 states that have finished counting primary votes this year, Republican turnout is up 38% while Democratic turnout is up 5%.
Covering much of western Dane County as well as some of Iowa and Green counties, the 80th Assembly District is solidly Democratic.
Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday issued an executive order to ban gasoline price gouging in Wisconsin.
Johnson said the bill erodes Second Amendment protections through a provision providing resources to states to adopt so-called red flag laws to remove guns from people deemed dangerous.
If doctors break the law, which could activate if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, they risk a felony conviction punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Nicholson's only path forward would be running a negative campaign blasting his opponents — a strategy he doesn't want to engage in, he said in a statement Tuesday.
A bid to bring the 2024 Republican National Convention to Nashville has hit a roadblock in the Democratic-leaning city's metro council, where opposition has led proponents to withdraw a proposed agreement about how to host the event.
"Do you understand what a putz this man is?" Bernier said in an interview of La Follette, 82, who is currently seeking his 11th consecutive term.
In the ad, which was leaked to The Intercept, Johnson draws attention to a mass death incident in San Antonio where over 50 immigrants died in an abandoned trailer, attributing it to lenient liberal immigration policies.
The gifts appear to go against guidance prohibiting cash gifts for senators and U.S. Senate employees unless the gift is from a relative or through an inheritance.
The winner of the Aug. 9 Democratic U.S. Senate primary will face Ron Johnson in an election key to deciding the U.S. Senate's future political balance.
Citing the content of her since-deleted tweets, Johnson said, "Shah demonstrated she would be yet another political partisan within our justice system. As a result, I will not support her nomination.”
The latest move comes after the GOP Legislature this year passed multiple bills intending to overhaul the elections system, all of which Democratic Gov. Tony Evers vetoed because he said they would make voting harder.
Among the top four Democratic U.S. Senate candidates, Nelson was in last place in fundraising and trailed the pack in the latest Marquette Law School Polls.
Bewley was not injured in the crash and no charges have been filed or recommended, though the State Patrol is reconstructing the incident, Ashland Police Chief Bill Hagstrom reportedly told the Ashland Daily Press.
Legal experts, including Republican attorneys, say there is no legal means to decertify the past election and no evidence to support such action. Yet decertification continues to be a rallying cry among many Republicans in Wisconsin and elsewhere.
Barnes is all but certain to face off against Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson in November.
Sen. Kathleen Bernier, R-Chippewa Falls, said she would take legal action if Democratic Secretary of State Doug La Follette didn't send out the documents by Monday.
Days after saying that running negative ads is "just bad policy," Tim Michels launched a blistering attack against Rebecca Kleefisch that faults her not backing Donald Trump in 2016 and brands her as "the ultimate Madison insider."
Liberal group Family Friendly Action PAC, funded largely by so called "dark money," endorsed Barnes on Monday and pledged to spend $5 million in Wisconsin to defeat U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson.
Milwaukee, in swing state Wisconsin, is the odds-on favorite to get the event given Nashville's refusal to adopt an agreement for hosting the convention.
Republicans on Friday unanimously chose Milwaukee in swing state Wisconsin to host the 2024 national convention, beating out Nashville in deep-red Tennessee.
Having become the presumptive Democratic U.S. Senate nominee after his top opponents dropped out last week, Mandela Barnes is now in one of the highest-profile contests in the country.
Former state lawmaker Adam Jarchow, Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric and conservative lawmaker Karen Mueller are running to be the Republican nominee for Attorney General on Aug. 9.
A member of the Beloit City Council and a Dodgeville High School teacher are vying for the seat currently held by Democratic Rep. Mark Spreitzer.
Heavily-Democratic, the party's race for the 79th Assembly District features a Dane County Board supervisor and a former NASA employee.
Covering much of western Dane County as well as some of Iowa and Green counties, the 80th Assembly District has been held for 20 years by retiring Rep. Sondy Pope, D-Mount Horeb.
Barnes' win would set him up to face Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson on Nov. 8.
The Democratic governor, who is seeking a second term this fall, made the announcement calling for $600 million in annual tax cuts.
A federal judge in Wisconsin signaled Wednesday that he will allow voters with disabilities to get help returning their ballots this fall, despite a state Supreme Court ruling that cast doubt on such assistance and state law suggesting it is not allowed.
His idea, which he has detailed several times in the past few months, comes as public and private employers across the state struggle to fill open roles.
Tim Michels, Wisconsin's Republican candidate for governor, is calling for people to take up “pitchforks and torches” in reaction to a story that detailed his giving to anti-abortion groups, churches and others — rhetoric that Democrats say amounts to threatening violence.
The snub came after a Barnes spokesperson last week wouldn't confirm whether the candidate would appear with the president.
Johnson's team has spoken with three potential hosts and sponsors and is working on details, Johnson spokesperson Ben Voelkel said. Voelkel said there aren't any firm commitments yet.
“I certainly don’t want to send my husband to jail because he put my ballot in the mailbox,” Trudy Le Beau said.
A privately funded get-out-the-vote initiative in Milwaukee has mayoral support, but Republicans say it’s an attempt by Democrats to improperly bolster turnout.
In politically-divided Wisconsin where recent elections have been decided by a few thousand votes, the outcome could hinge on self-described independent voters.
The proposal seeks to update the Electoral Count Act, a law Donald Trump sought to exploit in his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
Sen. Ron Johnson has called for the end of guaranteed money for Medicare and Social Security, trafficked in election conspiracy and dabbled in pseudoscience around the coronavirus.
The lawsuits come the day after a conservative law firm, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, sued the state Parole Commission seeking records about paroles that have been granted.
Johnson led Barnes, the Democratic nominee, 48% to 44% among registered voters, a new Fox News poll shows. Barnes led Johnson 50% to 46% in a Fox poll in August.
Mandela Barnes faces Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson on Nov. 8 in a race that could determine which party has majority control of the Senate.
A Waukesha County judge is prohibiting voters from canceling their original absentee ballot and casting a new one, siding with a conservative group created by prominent Republicans.
We've seen U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson and Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes duke it out in ads and on social media since August, but Friday will be the first time the U.S. Senate candidates participate together in a televised debate.
The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association face-off saw the two candidates clash on abortion, Social Security, public safety, immigration and climate change, among other issues.
How future proposals are presented to voters could hinge on the outcome of a case now before the Wisconsin Supreme Court involving another amendment voters approved.
The second scheduled U.S. Senate debate and the only gubernatorial debate are set to air Thursday and Friday.
"Absolutely certain" voters are strengthening the Republican candidates' poll results in both races, whereas less enthusiastic voters skew more Democratic, the Marquette poll shows.
Republican candidates across the country are seeking to expand recent gains the party has made with Hispanic voters from Florida to the Rio Grande Valley to Los Angeles.
If Mandela Barnes wins in Wisconsin, analysts say, it increases the odds Democrats will pick up seats elsewhere, giving the party enough votes to abolish the filibuster.
The TMJ4 showdown saw the two candidates clash on public safety, the economy and the candidates' use of taxpayer dollars.
The only gubernatorial debate will air at 7 p.m. Friday.
The two payments totaling over $20,000, including one for legal consulting regarding a "recount," were sent to a law firm led by Jim Troupis, a former Dane County Circuit Court judge.
The group is more liberal but also less likely to vote than most other age groups.
The Wisconsin race is one of a handful that could be critical to which party controls the U.S. Senate.
Sen. Ron Johnson was pushing for a tax cut provision in 2017 that benefitted his former plastics company and many others as his family was acquiring properties around the country.
Republicans need 66 votes to override a veto in the Assembly. But the math changes if any Democrats are absent.
