“This certainly trumps any one person’s ambitions or political career,” he said. “We are elected to put our fiscal house in order… You’ve got to do what’s best in your heart – what you feel is best for the future of the state.”

Recall supporters rallied earlier Friday outside the La Crosse City hall, where they celebrated collecting more than 20,000 signatures in fewer than 30 days - less than half the time allotted to gather the names required. They then loaded up the box of petitions and headed to Madison.

Kapanke is one of eight Republican senators targeted for recall over support for Gov. Scott Walker's bill to curtail collective bargaining rights for public employees. Eight Senate Democrats who fled to Illinois in an effort to block the bill are also targeted.

An earlier version of this story follows:

La Crosse area Democrats say they will file petitions today with enough signatures to trigger a recall election of Sen. Dan Kapanke, one of eight Senate Republicans targeted over votes to curtail collective bargaining rights for public workers. If approved, it would be just the fifth recall election of a Wisconsin legislator.