State Department of Public Instruction leader Tony Evers won the Democratic nomination for governor last night. He pulled ahead of seven other candidates and will take on Governor Scott Walker in the November election.
W-O-R-T reporters were on the scene at election night parties last night where Tony Evers celebrated his victory with supporters at the Park Hotel on the square. He won with 41% of the vote, racking up more votes than the next 3 candidates combined. After results came in last night, Evers congratulated his fellow candidates for keeping things civil. He says he’ll continue to do so in the general election against Walker.
State firefighter union president Mahlon Mitchell, backed by labor unions, came in second. Kelda Roys, who had earned the support of many women’s groups and millenials, placed third.Roys endorsed Evers at her Madison election night party and urged her supporters to do the same. She made a splash as one of the younger candidates in the race and received national attention for breastfeeding her infant daughter on the campaign trail; however, she ended up with only 13% of the vote.
Kelda stated: “When so much is at stake … Evers will fight for us.”
At her election night party, Vinehout said her campaign will serve as a model for other Democrats going forward. She represents rural western Wisconsin, and says their “people first” motto will reverberate as the election cycle goes on.
Turnout during yesterday’s election hit 22 percent of the state’s voting-age population. That’s the highest for a primary race in Wisconsin since 2002, when Jim Doyle first became governor.
Madison Mayor Paul Soglin lagged in the primary, placing 7th out of the eight candidates still in the race. He said last month that he won’t seek re-election for Madison mayor, a position he’s held for a total of 22 years.
Retired Milwaukee lawyer Matt Flynn came out in sixth place yesterday, and attorney Josh Pade trailed the pack in eighth place.
The general election is November 6th.
Reporting for WORT News: Nina Kravinsky. W-O-R-T News director Molly Stentz and reporter Will Kenneally also contributed to this report.