The 2018 Wisconsin Fall general election was held in the U.S. state of Wisconsin on November 6, 2018. All of Wisconsin's partisan executive and administrative offices were up for election, as well as one of Wisconsin's U.S. Senate seats, Wisconsin's eight seats in the United States House of Representatives, 17 seats in the Wisconsin State Senate, and all 99 seats in the Wisconsin State Assembly. The 2018 Wisconsin Fall partisan primary was held on August 14, 2018. There were also special elections held during 2018 for three State Assembly seats and two state senate seats.
The Democrats swept in all of the fall elections for statewide officials, unseating three incumbent Republicans, including two-term governor Scott Walker, and winning the open race for state treasurer. Republicans maintained control of both chambers in the Wisconsin Legislature however, as well as a majority of the state's U.S. House seats.
The 2018 Wisconsin Spring election was held on April 3, 2018. This election featured a contested election for Wisconsin Supreme Court, as well as a referendum on an amendment to the Constitution of Wisconsin, and various other nonpartisan local and judicial races. The 2018 Wisconsin Spring primary was held on February 20, 2018.
In the nonpartisan Supreme Court election, the Wisconsin Democrats also claimed victory, as their preferred candidate defeated the Republicans' preferred candidate, reducing the Republican majority on the court to 4–3.
Federal offices U.S. Senate
Incumbent Democrat Tammy Baldwin, first elected in 2012, won re-election to a second term by an 11 percentage point margin against Republican challenger Leah Vukmir. This was the widest margin of victory won by a statewide candidate in Wisconsin's 2018 elections, and marked the widest margin won by a U.S. Senate candidate in Wisconsin since Herb Kohl's landslide victory in the 2006 election.
U.S. House of Representatives
All 8 of Wisconsin's congressional districts were up for election in November. Seven incumbents ran for re-election, while the 1st district saw an open race after incumbent and then-Speaker of the House Paul Ryan announced his retirement. No seats flipped in the election, with Republicans continuing to hold five of the state's House seats to the Democrats' three.
DistrictDemocraticRepublicanOthersTotalResult Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes %District 1 137,508 42.27% 177,492 54.56% 10,317 3.17% 325,317 100.00% Republican holdDistrict 2 309,116 97.42% 0 0.00% 8,179 2.58% 317,295 100.00% Democratic holdDistrict 3 187,888 59.65% 126,980 40.31% 121 0.04% 314,989 100.00% Democratic holdDistrict 4 206,487 75.61% 59,091 21.64% 7,509 2.75% 273,087 100.00% Democratic holdDistrict 5 138,385 37.99% 225,619 61.93% 284 0.08% 364,288 100.00% Republican holdDistrict 6 144,536 44.46% 180,311 55.47% 218 0.07% 325,065 100.00% Republican holdDistrict 7 124,307 38.50% 194,061 60.11% 4,472 1.39% 322,840 100.00% Republican holdDistrict 8 119,265 36.28% 209,410 63.69% 99 0.03% 328,774 100.00% Republican holdTotal 1,367,492 53.18% 1,172,964 45.61% 31,199 1.21% 2,571,655 100.00%
State Executive All of Wisconsin's executive offices saw close election results, with the largest vote difference in any race being eight-term incumbent secretary of state Doug La Follette‘s 5.5 percent margin of victory. Every executive office was won by the Democratic candidate.
Governor
Incumbent Republican governor Scott Walker, first elected in 2010, sought re-election to a third term. Despite having won two prior elections and a recall by fairly comfortable margins, Walker faced rising unpopularity due to his policies regarding infrastructure and education, among other issues, resulting in a close race. Low approval in Wisconsin of incumbent Republican U.S. President Donald Trump also harmed Walker in the election.
Walker was ultimately defeated by Democrat Tony Evers by a narrow one percent margin, ending eight years of unified Republican control of the state.
Other candidates included Libertarian Phil Anderson and Independent Maggie Turnbull.
Lieutenant governor Former state representative Mandela Barnes defeated incumbent Republican lieutenant governor Rebecca Kleefisch, who had served since 2011, and Libertarian Patrick Baird. Barnes became Wisconsin's first African-American lieutenant governor, and the second African-American ever elected to state office in Wisconsin.
Attorney general
Republican incumbent Brad Schimel, first elected in 2014, ran for re-election to a second term. Voting rights attorney and former federal prosecutor Josh Kaul, the Democratic nominee, defeated Schimel in the general election. Terry Larson, the Constitution Party nominee, also garnered around 2% of the vote, greater than the vote difference between Schimel and Kaul.
Secretary of state
Incumbent Democrat Doug La Follette, first elected in 1982 (and also serving from 1975 to 1979), won re-election to a tenth non-consecutive term. Madison Alderwoman Arvina Martin challenged La Follette in the Democratic primary.
Jay Schroeder was nominated in the Republican primary to run against La Follette, pledging to abolish the position if elected.
Libertarian sports announcer Rich Reynolds declared his candidacy for the position as well, joining the "TeamGuv" bill with Phil Anderson and Patrick Baird.
Governing magazine projected the race as "safe Democratic".
Treasurer
Earlier in the year, a referendum had been held on whether or not to abolish the State Treasurer office, a move that Wisconsin voters rejected by a margin of more than 20 percent.
Incumbent Republican Matt Adamczyk, first elected in 2014, chose not to run for reelection. Sarah Godlewski, the Democratic nominee, defeated Republican Travis Hartwig in the general.
Legislature State senate
Two special elections had been held earlier in the year for the 1st and 10th districts. Both races were won by Democrats, despite the respective districts’ usual Republican leanings.
The 17 odd-numbered districts out of the 33 seats in the Wisconsin Senate were up for election in 2018, including the 1st district. In total, Republicans had 10 seats up for election, while Democrats had 7. André Jacque was able to win back the 1st district seat for Republicans from Democrat Caleb Frostman, who had defeated him in the June special election.
At the start of 2018, the senate had a composition of 18 Republicans and 13 Democrats with two vacancies. The net result of all 2018 state senate elections was a gain of one seat for both parties. When compared to the 2016 general election, however, the Republican majority was reduced from 20 to 13 (60.6%) to 19-14 (57.6%).
Summary
AffiliationParty (Shading indicates majority caucus)TotalDemocraticRepublicanVacant Last election (2016) 13 20 33 0 Before 2018 18 31 2 After Jan. 16 special 14 32 1 After June 12 special 15 33 0 Up in 2018 general 7 10 17 Incumbent retiring 1 2 3 After 2018 elections 14 19 33 0 Voting share 42% 58%
State Assembly
All 99 seats in the Wisconsin State Assembly were up for election in 2018. There were also two special elections for three Assembly vacancies during the course of 2018. Republicans lost one seat to the Democrats in the 2018 general election, resulting a 63-36 seat Republican majority going into the 2019-2020 session.
Summary
AffiliationParty (Shading indicates majority caucus)TotalDemocraticRepublicanVacant Last election (2016) 35 64 99 0 Before 2018 34 62 96 3 After Jan. 16 special 35 63 98 1 After June 12 special 64 99 0 Up in 2018 general 35 64 99 Incumbent retiring 4 9 13 Incumbent lost primary 2 0 2 Total without incumbent 6 9 15 After 2018 elections 36 63 99 0 Voting share 36% 64%
Judiciary State Supreme Court
Results
State Court of Appeals Two seats on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals were up for election in 2018, but both seats were uncontested. In District I, Judge Timothy Dugan was elected to his first full term after being appointed by Governor Scott Walker in 2016. In District IV, Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg was elected to her second six-year term.
State Circuit Courts Fifty three of the state's 249 circuit court seats were up for election in 2018. Eleven of those seats were contested. Only one incumbent was defeated seeking re-election, Shaughnessy Murphy—an appointee of Governor Scott Walker in the Eau Claire Circuit. In the Buffalo–Pepin circuit, district attorney Thomas W. Clark defeated family court commissioner Roger Hillestad to succeed retiring judge James J. Duvall. In Clark County's branch 1 election, former district attorney Lyndsey Boon Brunette defeated attorney Roberta Heckes to succeed retiring judge Jon Counsell. In Columbia County's branch 3 election, assistant district attorney Troy D. Cross defeated former Sauk County corporation counsel Brenda Yaskal to succeed retired judge Alan White. Attorneys Steven Sarbacker and Clifford Burdon were eliminated in the nonpartisan primary. In Dane County's branch 1 election, former assistant attorney general Susan M. Crawford defeated municipal judge Marilyn Townsend to succeed retiring judge Timothy Samuelson. In Eau Claire County's branch 5 election, attorney Sarah Harless defeated incumbent judge Shaughnessy Murphy. In Juneau County's branch 1 election, assistant Vernon County district attorney Stacy Smith defeated former district attorney Scott Southworth to succeed retired judge John Pier Roemer. In Manitowoc County's branch 2 election, attorney Jerilyn Dietz defeated attorney Ralph Sczygelski to succeed retiring judge Gary Bendix. Municipal judge Eric Pangburn, court commissioner Patricia Koppa, and attorney John Bilka were eliminated in the nonpartisan primary. In the Price County circuit, incumbent judge Kevin Klein defeated a challenge from district attorney Mark Fuhr. In Sauk County's branch 3 election, former district attorney Patricia Barrett defeated municipal judge Sandra Cardo Gorsuch to succeed retiring judge Guy Reynolds. In Waukesha County's branch 12 election, court commissioner Laura Lau defeated attorney Jack Melvin to succeed retiring judge Kathryn Foster. In Winnebago County's branch 1 election, attorney Teresa Basiliere defeated deputy district attorney Scott Ceman to succeed retiring judge Thomas Gritton.