In our Anecdotal Evidence column, movers and shakers share personal stories of how intriguing (and often odd) presidential campaigning in their respective swing state can be.
Craig Gilbert – Washington Bureau Chief, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel & Author of The Wisconsin Voter Blog
Craig Gilbert. Photo: Lars Gesing/CU News Corps
“One of the weird things about Wisconsin: When the Democratic nominee has been a Southerner, the state tends to be more Fifty-Fifty. When it has been a Northerner, it tends to be more Democratic.
“With people like John Kerry (former Massachusetts senator), Michael Dukakis (former Massachusetts governor) and Walter Mondale (former Minnesota senator), it’s been a state the Democrats have been able to win even when they lost nationally.
“With Bill Clinton (former Arkansas governor) and Al Gore (former Tennessee senator), it’s been a state that Democrats have been able to win, but they didn’t do better than they did elsewhere.
“We don’t have a lot of presidential elections to know if these things are random. But it’s a Wisconsin quirk.”
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