The 2016 Wisconsin Democratic presidential primary was held on April 5 in the U.S. state of Wisconsin as one of the Democratic Party's primaries ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Vermont senator Bernie Sanders won the contest with 56.59%, distancing nationwide frontrunner Hillary Clinton by about 14 percentage points.

The Wisconsin Republican primary, held on the same day in conjunction with the Democratic primary, yielded a win for Ted Cruz, who distanced nationwide frontrunner Donald Trump by 13%. With no other primaries being scheduled for that day by either party and just two weeks ahead of the important New York primary, the Wisconsin primary was in the national spotlight.

The two parties' primaries were held in conjunction with this year's Wisconsin judicial elections, where Wisconsin Supreme Court justice Rebecca Bradley was confirmed for a 10-year elected term, winning over Appeals Court judge JoAnne Kloppenburg.

Wisconsin provided a friendly setting for Sanders's brand of economic populism. Liberals made up two-thirds of the majority-white primary electorate, and the economy, followed by income inequality, were of top concern to voters, according to exit polls.

Clinton lost Wisconsin by a narrow margin of 0.77% in the general election, against Republican nominee Donald Trump.

Procedure State primary procedure As Wisconsin held an open primary, residents could choose freely which party's primary they wished to participate in, when showing up at the polls on election day, regardless of their official registration with either party or none. Polling stations were opened between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Central Time.

The two parties' primaries were held in conjunction with this year's spring elections that included the election of the Wisconsin Supreme Court justice.

Democratic nomination procedure The Democratic Party of Wisconsin pledges only 86 out of 96 delegates to the 2016 Democratic National Convention based on the popular vote at the primary election on the basis of proportional apportion. However, only the 18 at-large delegates and 10 pledged "Party Leaders and Elected Officials" (PLEOs) are apportioned according to the statewide vote, while the 57 district delegates are apportioned according to the vote within each of the state's eight congressional districts. The remaining ten Wisconsin delegates are unpledged "Party Leaders and Elected Officials" (PLEOs), or "Superdelegates", who may vote for whomever they wish at the party's upcoming National Convention.

Candidates While three candidates appeared on the Democratic primary ballot, only Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton actively campaigned for the Wisconsin contest, after Martin O'Malley had already suspended his campaign.

Presidential debate in Milwaukee, February 2016

The Democratic Party held its sixth presidential debate on February 11, 2016 in Milwaukee, at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. Moderated by PBS NewsHour anchors Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff, the debate aired on PBS and was simulcast by CNN. Participants were Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.

Opinion polling

Results

Results by county County Clinton % Sanders % Adams 1,37547.22% 1,515 52.03% Ashland 1,24836.00% 2,204 63.57% Barron 2,57246.11% 2,965 53.16% Bayfield 1,48836.09% 2,619 63.52% Brown 16,70142.40% 22,559 57.27% Buffalo 82541.46% 1,149 57.74% Burnett 91849.04% 936 50.00% Calumet 3,02842.86% 4,017 56.86% Chippewa 4,02243.77% 5,127 55.79% Clark 1,47342.67% 1,969 57.04% Columbia 4,18739.21% 6,460 60.49% Crawford 1,14641.61% 1,592 57.81% Dane 61,40537.27% 102,986 62.51% Dodge 4,50541.75% 6,249 57.91% Door 2,94346.06% 3,426 53.62% Douglas 3,57743.82% 4,512 55.27% Dunn 2,42135.95% 4,279 63.54% Eau Claire 7,68935.88% 13,674 63.81% Florence 17536.92% 293 61.81% Fond du Lac 5,51942.65% 7,385 57.07% Forest 61047.25% 667 51.67% Grant 3,06840.37% 4,491 59.10% Green 2,76638.59% 4,368 60.95% Green Lake 87142.89% 1,148 56.52% Iowa 2,16440.14% 3,202 59.40% Iron 43742.93% 563 55.30% Jackson 1,29440.64 1,872 58.79% Jefferson 4,77538.60% 7,555 61.07% Juneau 1,35542.21% 1,839 57.29% Kenosha 10,89742.49% 14,653 57.13% Kewaunee 1,49747.06% 1,667 52.40% La Crosse 8,90836.93% 15,156 62.84% Lafayette 1,17046.37% 1,331 52.75% Langlade 1,19244.83% 1,447 54.42% Lincoln 1,73241.33% 2,442 58.27% Manitowoc 4,99943.37% 6,458 56.03% Marathon 8,06140.66% 11,673 58.87% Marinette 2,58048.59% 2,698 50.81% Marquette 99442.62% 1,321 56.56% Menominee 20436.36% 355 63.28% Milwaukee 100,79851.68% 93,688 48.02% Monroe 2,26938.86% 3,539 60.61% Oconto 2,42247.99% 2,590 51.32% Oneida 2,50039.40% 3,813 60.09% Outagamie 11,22839.62% 17,021 60.07% Ozaukee 6,58748.75% 6,897 51.04% Pepin 43543.54% 561 56.16% Pierce 2,34341.82% 3,208 57.27% Polk 2,16546.21% 2,476 52.85% Portage 5,08835.08% 9,351 64.46% Price 86237.56% 1,418 61.79% Racine 14,11148.84% 14,681 50.82% Richland 1,27641.55% 1,786 58.16% Rock 11,26239.20% 17,360 60.42% Rusk 81642.52% 1,092 56.90% St. Croix 4,89545.90% 5,679 53.25% Sauk 4,52738.48% 7,203 61.22% Sawyer 97636.86% 1,654 62.46% Shawano 2,11741.19% 3,303 58.44% Sheboygan 7,14544.13% 8,952 55.30% Taylor 85239.68% 1,279 59.57% Trempealeau 1,98944.76% 2,430 54.68% Vernon 1,93635.60% 3,481 64.01% Vilas 1,41436.36% 2,147 60.09% Walworth 5,18837.96% 8,426 61.65% Washburn 1,05842.32% 1,419 56.76% Washington 6,38845.24% 7,690 54.46% Waukesha 24,83548.28% 26,442 51.40% Waupaca 2,58539.68% 3,894 59.77% Waushara 1,24143.45% 1,600 56.02% Winnebago 11,21238.44% 17,854 61.22% Wood 4,42839.46% 6,756 60.20%Total 433,73943.05%570,192 56.59%

Detailed results per congressional district + Detailed results for the Wisconsin Democratic primary, April 5, 2016The Green Papers District Total Bernie Sanders Hillary Clinton Votes Delegates Votes Delegates Votes Delegates 1st district 104,747 6 57,327 3 47,420 3 2nd district 204,897 11 127,466 7 77,431 4 3rd district 117,465 7 72,043 4 45,422 3 4th district 144,659 10 68,255 5 76,404 5 5th district 100,823 5 54,809 3 46,014 2 6th district 105,348 6 60,490 3 44,858 3 7th district 98,860 6 56,683 3 42,177 3 8th district 107,841 6 61,965 3 45,876 3 At-large delegates 1,002,036 19 567,865 11 434,171 8 Pledged PLEOs 1,002,036 10 567,865 6 434,171 4 Total 1,002,036 86 567,865 48 434,171 38

Analysis

Bernie Sanders scored a large victory in Wisconsin, a largely liberal and big manufacturing state. He was bolstered by a 73-26 showing among younger voters, a 64-35 showing among men, a 72-28 showing among self-identified Independents, and a 59-40 showing among white voters who comprised 83% of the electorate in the Cheese State. Sanders also won women 50–49, but lost African American voters to Clinton, 69–31. Sanders swept all income and educational attainment levels in Wisconsin.

Sanders won unions 54–46, a key demographic in the industrial Rust Belt.

Sanders swept all counties in Wisconsin but one. He was victorious in the southeast 55–45, in the southwest 62–38, and in rural northeastern and northwestern Wisconsin 57–42. He carried the major cities of Madison, which has a younger electorate, as well as Eau Claire, Green Bay, Oshkosh, and Kenosha. Clinton won in Milwaukee 51–48, likely thanks to her ardent African-American support.

References