The 2010 Wisconsin gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 2010, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Wisconsin. The primary elections on September 14 determined which candidates advanced to the general election.
Incumbent Democratic governor Jim Doyle did not seek re-election in 2010, making for the first open gubernatorial election in Wisconsin since 1982. Republican nominee Scott Walker, the Milwaukee County Executive, defeated Democratic nominee Tom Barrett, the mayor of Milwaukee. As of 2022, this was the last gubernatorial election in which a Republican gubernatorial candidate carried La Crosse and Columbia counties, and the last in which a Democratic candidate carried Trempealeau County.
Democratic primary
Candidates for governor
Declared
Tom Barrett, Mayor of Milwaukee and former U.S. Representative and candidate in 2002
Tim John
Failed to qualify
Jared Gary Christiansen
Dominic Reinwand
Candidates for lieutenant governor
Declared
G. Spencer Coggs, state senator from Milwaukee and former state representative for 20 years.
Tom Nelson, Democratic Majority Leader in the Wisconsin State Assembly, member since 2005 representing Outagamie County.
Henry Sanders
James L. Schneider
Results
Republican primary
Candidates for governor
Declared
Mark Neumann, former U.S. Representative and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1998
Scott Paterick
Scott Walker, Milwaukee County Executive and candidate in 2006
Failed to qualify
William "Bill" Ingram, truck driver and write-in candidate for President of the United States in 2008
John Schless
Candidates for lieutenant governor
Declared
Brett Davis, state representative from Oregon, Wisconsin.
Rebecca Kleefisch, former WISN-TV morning anchor and frequent on-air contributor to Charlie Sykes' radio show on WTMJ (AM).
Robert Gerald Lorge
Dave Ross, Mayor of Superior, Wisconsin
Nick Voegeli
Polling
Results
Others
Candidates
Declared
James Dean Langer (Independent)
James James (Common Sense)
Failed to qualify
Michael J. Blinkwitz
Terry Virgil
General election
Candidates
Seven candidates appeared on the primary election ballot: two Democrats, three Republicans and two other candidates. After Walker and Barrett won their respective primaries, they faced each other and independent candidates using the "Independent" and "Common Sense" labels in the November general election.
Predictions
Polling
Results
Results by county
[1]
Counties that flipped Democratic to Republican
Barron (largest city: Rice Lake)
Burnett (largest village: Grantsburg)
Clark (largest city: Neillsville)
Iron (largest city: Hurley)
Jefferson (largest city: Watertown)
Marathon (largest city: Wausau)
Monroe (largest city: Sparta)
Oneida (largest city: Rhinelander)
Outagamie (largest city: Appleton)
Rusk (largest city: Ladysmith)
Washburn (largest city: Spooner)
Buffalo (largest city: Mondovi)
Columbia (largest city: Portage)
Door (largest city: Sturgeon Bay)
Dunn (largest city: Menomonie)
Forest (largest city: Crandon)
Grant (largest city: Platteville)
Jackson (largest city: Black River Falls)
Kenosha (largest city: Kenosha)
Lafayette (largest city: Darlington)
Lincoln (largest city: Merrill)
Pepin (largest city: Durand)
Price (largest city: Park Falls)
Richland (largest city: Richland Center)
Sawyer (largest city: Hayward)
Winnebago (largest city: Oshkosh)
Adams (largest city: Adams)
Polk (Largest city: Amery)
St. Croix (Largest city: Hudson)
Sauk (largest city: Baraboo)
La Crosse (largest city: La Crosse)
Vernon (largest city: Viroqua)
References
External links
Elections & Voting Archived November 7, 2012, at the Wayback Machine at the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board
Candidate list Archived August 26, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
Wisconsin Governor Candidates at Project Vote Smart
Campaign contributions for 2010 Wisconsin Governor from Follow the Money
2010 Wisconsin Gubernatorial General Election graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
Election 2010: Wisconsin Governor from Rasmussen Reports
2010 Wisconsin Governor – Walker vs. Barrett from Real Clear Politics
2010 Wisconsin Governor's Race from CQ Politics
Race Profile in The New York Times
Election 2010 at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Debates
Wisconsin Governor Republican Primary Debate, C-SPAN, August 25, 2010
Wisconsin Gubernatorial Debate, C-SPAN, September 24, 2010