Tag: Upper Midwest

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Democrats are fighting to beat back Republican gains across the Midwest as the 2018 primary season roars through Wisconsin and Minnesota, two states where President Donald Trump's appeal among working-class voters threatens to upend decadeslong political trends this fall and beyond. At the same time, accusations of domestic violence involving the Democratic National Committee's second-in-command could undermine any blue wave in Minnesota, a state still healing from scandal. All but 10 states will have picked their candidates for November's general election by the time all votes are counted in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Vermont and Connecticut. Democrats appear particularly motivated in Wisconsin, where eight candidates have lined up for the chance to take on Republican Gov. Once a target of Trump criticism, Walker gained the president's endorsement in a tweet Monday night calling him "a tremendous Governor who has done incredible things for that Great State." "By attacking Wisconsin workers to cover for failed economic policy, President Trump took a page right out of Scott Walker's playbook," said Mahlon Mitchell, one of the candidates and the head of the state firefighters union. Neither candidate was an early Trump supporter, and Vukmir has struggled to explain footage recently unearthed from 2016 in which she calls Trump "offensive to everyone." His replacement, Democratic Sen. Tina Smith, is on Tuesday's ballot as she seeks her first full term. He's the leading Republican candidate in the high-profile race to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Pawlenty has since said he voted for Trump and supports his agenda.