Wisconsin Democrats on Tuesday will choose from a field that once swelled to over a dozen candidates — an array of businessmen, state legislators, the mayor of Wisconsin’s most liberal city and the chief of the state firefighters union — to realize their long-elusive goal of defeating Republican Gov. Scott Walker.

But the clear frontrunner is state education superintendent Tony Evers, a 66-year-old white man who stands out in a year when Democrats have put forward high numbers of women, young people and first-time candidates for office. What Evers lacks in sizzle, Democrats are hoping he compensates for with a record of clashes with Walker over education that could energize his party and deny the Republican governor a third term.


After years of doing battle with unions and pushing conservative legislation, Walker may be the one Republican who gets Wisconsin Democrats as agitated as President Donald Trump does. And that, say some Democratic officials in the state, might be enough in a year like this.

"If there's a rub on Tony Evers, it might be that he's too nice," said Joe Wineke, a former Wisconsin Democratic Party chairman. "But I'm not convinced Midwestern nice is going to be a bad thing in the year of Trump.”

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While talk of rolling back Walker’s accomplishments has dominated the Democratic primary, Republicans have already sought to define the terms of the campaign. The Republican Party of Wisconsin has already focused attack ads on four candidates: Evers, former Wisconsin Democratic Party chairman Matt Flynn, former state Rep. Kelda Roys, and Professional Firefighters of Wisconsin President Mahlon Mitchell.

"I do think this is our big opportunity. This is a favorable year for Democrats. It's a year in which women candidates and women voters are more energized and are being more successful than ever in modern political history," said Roys.

The Democratic primary has hardly been the bareknuckle brawl one might expect from a big field in a divided state. But it has split money and endorsements over a broad range of candidates, leading the Democratic Governors Association to task a operative with building fundraising infrastructure for the eventual primary winner, to assure the nominee is able to compete with Walker’s campaign machine. That has given an edge to Evers, who has been elected statewide three times since 2009.

“We had a gubernatorial primary that really didn't ever take off, and so for that reason Evers is a perfectly acceptable statewide figure who's probably going to win,” said Democratic pollster Paul Maslin.

Evers has also embodied the anti-Walker mood, bashing Walker as “anti-education” and vowing to bring back funding for after school program and kindergarten in the next 2019 and 2021 budget.

“To beat Scott Walker we need a stronger vision for our future. Instead of investing a billion dollars in handouts to companies like Foxconn, I’m going to invest in our kids and our workers,” Evers said in an ad. The narrator adds: “What’s best for our kids is best for our state.”

The biggest criticism aimed at Evers came from Matt Flynn, another primary candidate, who’s argued that Evers, along with Mitchell and Roys, have run ineffective campaigns and would lose decisively against Walker in a general election matchup. Flynn has accused Evers of being a “politically naïve” candidate.

Mitchell, the labor leader, has rallied most of the other major Wisconsin unions to his side. He has run as a pragmatic liberal candidate who, as an African American, can appeal to minorities in the state and rally labor unions like no other candidate in the field.

But Roys, a former state representative, has highlighted her appeal to female voters with endorsements from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and her experience as the executive director of the NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin. Roys ran a celebrated primary ad that featured her breastfeeding her child.

As the Democrats have scrapped for votes within their party, Walker has been preparing for the sprint to the finish in the general election, amassing $4.8 million already. Since it's never been completely clear who he will face in the general election, Walker and his team have worked to highlight his policy accomplishments, framing him as an education-focused governor, while also bashing as many of the Democratic candidates as possible.

"Scott Walker has delivered results and traveled the state tirelessly to share his vision with the people of Wisconsin, and now he's built a campaign to win," Walker senior adviser Brian Reisinger said in a statement. "Tens of millions of dollars in big government special interest money is lining up to distort his record of reform, but the governor will continue to offer a conservative model for others by running on his accomplishments and vision to keep Wisconsin working for generations to come."

Once there's a Democratic nominee, the contrast between Walker and the Democrat will crystallize, said Republican strategist Mark Graul.

"The governor has been in sort of a vacuum. Either you're for Scott Walker or you're not for Scott Walker. And after Tuesday I think it'll be 'either you're for Scott Walker or whether it be Evers or Roys or Mitchell,'" Graul said. "So there will be a clear contrast of what people's choices are going to be in November."