ioby
Barrett Concedes
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
Mayor Tom Barrett, trailing Governor Walker 52-44, has conceded the recall election in Milwaukee. “We have seen this democracy come alive,” Barrett tells his supporters. “To those of you who fought, who obtained signatures, who stood out in the cold, who did what you thought was right, never ever stop doing what you think is right. That’s what makes this a great country.” more »
Walker Claims Victory, GAB Calls Foul
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
While Governor Walker claims victory in today’s recall election, the Wisconsin Government Accountability Office reports inappropriate behavior towards would be voters by media and election observers. “We hear some news media in the Milwaukee area have been interviewing voters, who are still waiting in line to vote at some polling places,” on the @Wisconsin_GAB twitter feed. “It is illegal and totally inappropriate for media or observers to be talking to voters who are still waiting in line to vote.” more »
Mainstream Media Calling Recall for Walker
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
With over a third of precincts reporting, mainstream media outlets CNN, the Associated Press, ABC News, NBC News and Fox are calling the recall election for Governor Walker. Money Talks Mother Jones’ Andy Kroll has been reporting on the flood of money coming into Wisconsin for Governor Walker’s campaign and potential effect on voter turnout. He tells IOBY it’s been paying dividends for the Walker campaign. “Driving through the middle of nowhere in Wisconsin and every other ad is supporting Governor Walker or attacking Mayor Barrett. This election had record spending. These recalls, and the state senate recalls last year, have been chilling case studies about how much money can flood into a relatively small area.” “They have so much money, they say a lot,” Kroll tells IOBY. “They have a huge megaphone. When you have that much money and hit the same talking points, people will start to believe that it’s true, even when it goes against their own interests.” more »
Impressive Turnout in Northern Wisconsin
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
In Our Backyard’s Live Election Coverage: Catching up with Joel Christopher, Digital Content Editor at the Appleton Post Crescent. Christopher says Brown County, home to Green Bay, had to print extra ballots and get them to polls. He also reported one specific problem in Appleton at the polling station on the Lawrence University campus. Partisan election observers challenged violations by poll workers registering workers. Christopher reported to IOBY the City Clerk in Appleton came to resolve each complaint on an individual basis. The major issue was voter identification for students registering for the first time. No clue at all yet as to turnout, says Christopher. Discourse Heated, But Civil “You see the divisiveness more in comments online or letters to the editor,” says Christopher. “There’s no question that people are emotionally invested in the outcome of this race.” Christopher says to keep an eye on Brown County, Outagamie County, where a breakout by Democrats would be impressive, and Marathon County. more »
No Major Voting Fraud, Says DOJ
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
As of 3pm, Department of Justice spokesperson Dana Brueck says election monitors across the state reported no major voting fraud issues. Some Irregularities Some people were turned away. The League of Women Voters Wisconsin, a non-partisan non-profit tracking election issues, says some Wisconsin students had a hard time voting. LWV’s Carolyn Castore said they’d gotten over 200 calls from students by 5pm today. The Capital Times is reporting that student turnout is much lower than in other wards. The problems cropped up in places like Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay, areas with large student populations. more »
