Mary Burke, locked with Gov. Scott Walker in one of the most closely watched governor’s races in the country, largely bypassed her nominal primary Tuesday to focus on the November election.

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Madison — Mary Burke cruised to victory Tuesday in the Democratic primary race for governor, setting up one of the most closely watched midterm races in the country between the former bicycle executive and Gov. Scott Walker.

Burke, a Madison School Board member and former state commerce secretary, never faced a threat in her primary race against state Rep. Brett Hulsey (D-Madison).

She didn't bother to celebrate the long-expected win with supporters Tuesday night, instead campaigning against Walker in Stevens Point and Tomahawk. In a statement Tuesday night, Burke said Wisconsin ranked last in job creation in the Midwest under Walker and had to do better.

"My commitment to the people of our great state is simple — I will be a governor who works for you and puts common-sense problem-solving ahead of the politics that have divided our state," Burke said.

Burke's win sets up the third and so far closest of Walker's runs for the state's top job. Polling shows a tight race between the Republican incumbent and Democratic challenger, drawing national attention in recent days as the two candidates head into the campaign's final 12 weeks.

Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said Wisconsin is one of the five most competitive races in the country involving an incumbent governor, along with Illinois, Michigan, Connecticut and Florida. That's unexpected in a Republican-trending year, Sabato said.

"Walker has won two tough battles in the past four years, and conditions are actually better for him to win in 2014," Sabato said. "Of course, Wisconsin is a Democratic-leaning competitive state. Walker was never destined to win by more than a few points, and that's still well within the realm of possibility."

As Sabato noted, Walker won both his 2010 election and a historic victory in 2012 as the first governor in U.S. history to survive a recall election.

This year, he is touting the state's improving economy — about 100,300 private-sector jobs have been created during his term — and his record of holding down spending and cutting property and income taxes. Burke says the pace of job creation is falling short of the national average and Walker's own 2010 campaign promise of creating 250,000 jobs in his first term.

A solid majority of Wisconsinites — 54.5% to 41% — feel the state is on the right track, according to last month's Marquette Law School poll, normally a great sign for any incumbent running for re-election. But the poll found that Walker's approval rating fell short of that mark.

The poll read the race as a true tossup, with Walker leading Burke among all registered voters, 46% to 45%, and Burke leading Walker among likely voters, 47% to 46%.

Walker has a strong fundraising advantage. As of June 30, he reported having $7.6 million on hand, about triple the $2.5 million Burke had. But Burke has said she will put some of her personal wealth into the race, likely enough to dull Walker's fundraising edge.

So far, much of the campaign advertising by both candidates has focused on Burke, her time with Trek and her years in Gov. Jim Doyle's administration.

Burke headed the European operations of Trek — a global company founded by her father, Richard Burke — and later directed its forecasting and strategic planning. Burke has said that gives her strong business credentials and she's put that experience at the center of her campaign. Walker has criticized the fact that Trek, like other American bike-makers, has outsourced most of its production to countries including China.

Burke puts less emphasis on her time serving as the commerce secretary for Doyle, a Democrat, from 2005 to 2007, but again says it proves she has the know-how to better the state's economy. Walker, on the other hand, has pointed to what he says were questionable economic development deals approved by the state during those years.

Hulsey jumped into the race for governor as he faced a primary challenge in his Assembly seat because of his erratic behavior and poor relations with his Democratic colleagues. He's had to run a campaign with almost no money, raising just two cash donations for a total of $35 last month and filming his campaign videos with his iPhone. Burke ignored him and declined any debates.

Trying to attract attention at any cost, Hulsey turned to stunts such as threatening to hand out Klansmen hoods outside the GOP convention this summer. The strategy didn't work, with a Marquette poll last month showing Hulsey was still an unknown quantity to 87% of the state's voters.

In the lieutenant governor's race, state Sen. John Lehman defeated liberal activist Mary Jo Walters in the Democratic primary.

In the GOP primary for secretary of state, party activist Julian Bradley easily defeated Rep. Garey Bies (R-Sister Bay). Bradley will face Democratic incumbent Doug La Follette.

In the state treasurer's race, Republican Matt Adamczyk defeated Randall Melchert in the GOP primary, while Democrats Dave Leeper and David Sartori were in a tight race.