Wisconsin GOP Gov. Scott Walker leads Democratic challenger Tom Barrett, mayor of Milwaukee, 52 percent to 43 percent among likely voters in Walker’s June 5 recall election, according to a new poll from We Ask America.
The other five percent are undecided, and the poll has a three percentage point margin of error.
Walker drew the ire of Democrats by curbing public workers’ collective bargaining rights, and unions are naturally working hard against him.
“While other polls also show Walker in the lead, no one is suggesting that this race is anywhere near over,”
We Ask America says in a statement. Walker’s advantage among self-described independents stands only at 48 percent to 45 percent. “And the underlying numbers seem fluid,” the group says.
Still, “For now, [the] light is shining a bit brighter on Scott Walker.” His supporters point out that he was duly elected in 2010 and that in most states it wouldn’t have been so easy for Walker’s opponents to succeed in pushing a recall election.
The race has turned into something of a national proxy, with big labor providing big support for Barrett and conservative political action committees giving Walker major help. The crux of the conflict between Democrats and Republicans is how to deal with state budget shortfalls.
Many political observers also view the contest as a dry run for November’s general election. “We’re within the gravitational pull of Election Day, so anything like this that involves the key players and lots of money is going to be understood as a prelude,” Robert Reich, former Clinton administration labor secretary, told Politico.
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