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If we can believe the latest polls — and many of the so-called experts don't — we could be in for a close race this fall between Gov. Scott Walker and Mary Burke.

The Public Policy Poll, which typically works for Democrats but is considered one of the more reliable, contends its latest survey of voters showed Walker leading by just three points, 48-45. What's interesting is that it's still more than six months before the election and Burke has just begun her campaign while Walker's allies have been bombarding the airwaves for months.

While the polls may be misleading this long before the actual election, what's clear is that Burke needs to establish how much she differs from Walker and his policies, and how her tenure as governor would bring this divided state back together.

So it was good to see her last week taking an unambiguous stand on what has become not only a national but a state issue — the minimum wage.

Walker, of course, is steadfast against increasing Wisconsin's $7.25 per hour minimum wage (the last time it was visited by the Legislature was 2002 and the last time it was adjusted to match the federal wage was 2009). He contended recently that those who are promoting an increase are involved in a "political grandstanding stunt" to make "a cheap headline."