State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald says his caucus is split over a primary campaign involving former senator Van Wanggaard, a Racine Republican who lost his seat in the recall elections.
Most Republican senators won their recall elections in 2011 and 2012, but Wanggaard lost his race to Sen. John Lehman (D-Racine). Wanggaard vowed to run again in 2014, and a Republican-drawn legislative map has set him up nicely, turning a once-competitive district into a GOP stronghold.
Not all Republicans, however, wanted to clear the field, and Wanggaard finds himself locked in a competitive primary with Republican Jonathan Steitz, who ran an unsuccessful recall campaign against Sen. Bob Wirch (D-Kenosha) two years ago.
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Fitzgerald said he likes both candidates, but that he personally supports Wanngaard.
“It’s a tough situation to be in,” said Fitzgerald. “I personally am supporting Van Wanggaard in that primary. The only reason that Van Wanggaard isn’t in the Legislature right now is because of his vote for Act 10.”
Still, Fitzgerald says this is a race where fellow Republicans are split.
“We have a couple of Republican senators that have been working and supporting Jonathan Steitz in a couple different ways,” said Fitzgerald. “But in the end, that happens. And it happens just about every cycle.”
Because Lehman is leaving the Legislature to run for lieutenant governor, whoever emerges from this primary will face Democrat Randy Bryce. Democrats concede it will be tough for them to hold this seat in November.
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