Early returns, which will be changing as the night goes on, show the incumbent Republicans leading in five of the six Senate recall elections in Wisconsin. Republicans need to win four to retain their Senate majority, which currently stands at 19-14. Democrats only need three wins tonight to take control of the upper chamber.
In Senate District 2, incumbent Republicans Robert Cowles leads Nancy Cowles with 60% of the vote, and 31% of precincts reporting.
In Senate District 8, Sen. Alberta Darling leads Rep. Sandy Pasch, D, 71-29, but with just 7% reporting. Darling is the best fundraiser of the Republicans, and probably the most skilled politician, but she is the biggest target for the Democrats after helping author the legislation that provoked the unions. Very likely, Republicans need her to win if they expect to keep the majority.
In Senate District 10, Sen. Sheila Harsdorf has a comfortable 59-41 lead over Shelly Moore with 37% reporting.
Sen. Luther Olsen has a bare 51-49 lead over Democrat Rep. Fred Clark with 27% of votes counted. Like Darling, Olsen is a vulnerable Republican who could hold the key to a Republican majority. He lives in a very strong Republican district, but this is a rare year, and he is an inexperienced campaigner. Still, the strong Republican registration advantage in this rural district keeps Olsen in office, though the race looks like it’ll go down to the wire.
The scandal-plagued Sen. Randy Hopper leads Jessica King, D, 54-46 with 7% reporting. The polls showed the race trending his way in the last few days, but Republicans might not want to get their hopes up here.
Sen. Dan Kapanke, R, is in a 50-50 tie with 21% reporting, but the word is that a lot of Democrat-strongholds are yet to report their numbers. Kapanke looked like a dead duck heading into Election Day.
