The recall election earlier that year displayed a higher level of cross-partisan voting. At the time, a Marquette poll showed that seven percent of those planning to vote for Walker in the recall were also poised to support Obama in the presidential election. Four percent of Barrett supporters said they planned to vote for Romney.

Similarly, points out Marquette pollster Charles Franklin, roughly 10 percent of voters in recent polls have expressed approval of both the president and the governor, both of whose approval ratings have hovered near 50 percent throughout the past year.

While reports of increased polarization in the state and country are typically met with dismay, there is a silver lining to an election process that focuses more on turning out the base than appealing to the middle. As Craig Gilbert of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has shown, voters appear to be more engaged as a result. The most partisan parts of the state — deep blue Dane County and red-hot Waukesha County — have higher voter participation than moderate counties.