2024 Wisconsin Senate election

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2024 Wisconsin Senate election

← 2022 November 5, 2024 2026 →

16 of 33 seats in the Wisconsin Senate
17 seats needed for a majority
 
Leader Devin LeMahieu Dianne Hesselbein
Party Republican Democratic
Leader's seat 9thOostburg 27thMiddleton
Last election 12 seats, 61.1% 5 seats, 37.68%
Current seats 22 11
Seats needed Steady Increase 6
Seats up 10 6

Map of the incumbents:
     Republican incumbent      Republican-incumbent retiring
     Democratic incumbent
     No incumbent
     No election

Incumbent President

Chris Kapenga
Republican



The 2024 Wisconsin Senate election is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Sixteen of the 33 seats in the Wisconsin Senate are up for election—the even-numbered districts. Currently, 22 Senate seats are held by Republicans, 10 seats are held by Democrats, one seat is vacant.

The primary election was held on August 13, 2024. The filing deadline to appear on the ballot was June 3, 2024.[1]

Background

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This election will be significantly affected by the legislative maps drawn as a result of the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision in Clarke v. Wisconsin Elections Commission, which declared the current legislative district map to be unconstitutional on December 22, 2023. [2] The court was in the process of selecting a remedial plan, when the legislature chose to embrace the remedial map proposal from Governor Tony Evers. Evers signed the plan into law on February 19, 2024. [3]

Under the new maps, Democrats are expected to gain seats in the Senate, but they are not expected to be able to win a majority because only even-numbered seats are up for election in 2024.[4][5] Five of the sixteen seats up for election have no incumbents.[6] Both parties are expected to spend heavily on the competitive races this cycle.[7]

Democrats last won a majority of seats in the state senate in the 2012 recall elections, but they last seated a majority of seats in a session after the 2008 elections.

PFAS Legislation

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To combat the threat of PFAS contamination, the Wisconsin legislature included $125 million in the state budget. Despite this, Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) have refused to release the funds to be used by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR). On April 9, Evers vetoed a piece of legislation which would have created grants to fight pollution due to PFAS chemicals, in explaining his veto, Evers cited the restrictions the legislation would have placed on the DNR to prosecute polluters. In vetoing the legislation, Evers also continued calling for the release of the $125 million which was set aside in the budget for combatting PFAS contamination.[8] In response to Evers' veto, JFC members said they would hold the funds hostage.

On April 16, Evers called the JFC to session, but its Republican members refused to attend, denying the committee a quorum to do business.[9] In response to this inaction, Wisconsin Democrats launched a six-figures campaign called "No More Games" which served the purpose to pressure and target members of the Committee from competitive districts. Among their targets were Senate Republicans Joan Ballweg, Howard Marklein, Duey Stroebel, and Eric Wimberger, from the 14th, 17th, 20th and 30th districts respectively.[10]

Summary

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Party
(majority caucus shading)
Total
Democratic Republican
Last election (2022) 5 12 17
Total after last election (2022) 11 22 33
Total before this election 11 22 33
Up for election 6 10 16
of which: Incumbent retiring 1 2 3
Vacated 1 0 1
Open 1 3 4
Unopposed 5 0

5

Outgoing incumbents

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Retiring

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Seeking other office

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  • Melissa Agard (D–Madison), representing district 16 since 2020, is retiring to run for Dane County executive.
  • Dan Knodl (R–Germantown), representing district 8 since 2023, announced in February 2024 that he would not seek reelection to the district after the 2024 redistricting put him in an incumbent-vs-incumbent matchup. Instead, Knodl is running for Wisconsin State Assembly in Wisconsin's 24th Assembly district.[12]

Vacated

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Special elections

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There was one special election scheduled in 2024 for the Wisconsin state Senate.

Dist. 2020
Pres.
[13]
Previous Incumbent This Election
Senator Party First
elected
Status Candidate(s) Results
04 D+69.2 Lena Taylor Dem. 2004 Incumbent resigned on January 26, 2024.
New member elected on July 30, 2024.
New member elected
Democratic hold

Incumbents and candidates

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Dist. 2020
Pres.
[14]
Incumbent This race
Member Party First
elected
Status Approved
candidate(s)[15][16]
02 R+26.5 None (open seat) New member to be elected
04 D+68.4 Dora Drake Dem. 2024
(special)
Incumbent running
06 D+71.2 La Tonya Johnson Dem. 2016 Incumbent Running
08 D+0.6 Dan Knodl Rep. 2023
(special)
Running for the 24th state assembly district
Duey Stroebel
(Redistricted from the 20th district)
Rep. 2015
(special)
Incumbent Running
10 R+17.1 Rob Stafsholt Rep. 2020 Incumbent Running
12 R+25.6 Mary Felzkowski Rep. 2020 Incumbent Running
14 D+4 Howard Marklein[a]
(Redistricted from the 17th district)
Rep. 2014 Serving as Senator until January 4, 2027
16 D+35.3 None (open seat) New member to be elected
18 D+8.5 None (open seat) New member to be elected
  • Kristin Alfheim (Dem.)[26]
  • Anthony Phillips (Rep.)[27]
20 R+34.8 Dan Feyen
(Redistricted from the 18th district)
Rep. 2016 Incumbent Running
22 D+10.3 Robert Wirch Dem. 1996 Incumbent Running
24 R+11.6 Patrick Testin Rep. 2016 Incumbent Running
26 D+71.8 Kelda Roys Dem. 2020 Incumbent Running
Melissa Agard
(Redistricted from the 16th district)
Dem. 2020 Running for Dane County executive
28 R+22.2 None (open seat) New member to be elected
30 D+3.2 Eric Wimberger Rep. 2020 Running for the 2nd district
  • Jim Rafter (Rep.)[31]
  • Jamie Wall (Dem.)[32]
Robert Cowles
(Redistricted from the 2nd district)
Rep. 1987
(special)
Incumbent retiring.
André Jacque[b]
(Redistricted from the 1st district)
Rep. 2018 Serving as Senator until January 4, 2027
32 D+10.7 Brad Pfaff Dem. 2020 Incumbent Running

Detailed results

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District 2

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Incumbent Republican Robert Cowles declined to seek re-election. Fellow Republican Eric Wimberger decided to move to this district and will face Democrat Kelly Peterson in the general election.

District 2 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Eric Wimberger
Democratic Kelly Peterson
Total votes

District 4

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Incumbent Democrat Dora Drake is running for re-election unopposed. In the primary she defeated state representative LaKeshia Myers in a rematch from the prior special election primary.

District 4 Democratic primary[35]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Dora Drake (incumbent) 12,630 62.35
Democratic LaKeshia Myers 7,605 37.54
Write-in 23 0.11
Total votes 20,258 100.0
District 4 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Dora Drake (incumbent)
Total votes

District 6

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Incumbent Democrat La Tonya Johnson is running for re-election unopposed.

District 6 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic La Tonya Johnson (incumbent)
Total votes

District 8

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Incumbent Republican Dan Knodl declined to seek re-election after redistricting put fellow incumbent Duey Stroebel into his district. Stroebel is set to face Democrat Jodi Habush Sinykin, who was a candidate for this district in 2023.

District 8 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Duey Stroebel (incumbent)
Democratic Jodi Habush Sinykin
Total votes

District 10

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Incmbent Republican Rob Stafsholt is running for re-election. He will face Democrat Paul Hambleton in the general election.

District 10 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rob Stafsholt (incumbent)
Democratic Paul Hambleton
Total votes

District 12

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Incumbent Republican Mary Felzkowski is running for re-election. She will face Democrat Andi Rich in the general election.

District 12 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mary Felzkowski (incumbent)
Democratic Andi Rich
Total votes

District 14

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Incumbent Republican Joan Ballweg is seeking re-election after being drawn out of this district due to redistricting. In the general election she will face Democrat Sarah Keyeski.

District 14 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Joan Ballweg (incumbent)
Democratic Sarah Keyeski
Total votes

District 16

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Incumbent Democrat Melissa Agard declined to seek re-election, leaving the seat open. In the primary, three Democrats faced off, being state representatives Jimmy Anderson, Samba Baldeh, and Melissa Ratcliff, from the 47th, 48th, and 46th districts respectively. Ratcliff defeated both Anderson and Baldeh by a wide margin and is unopposed in the general election.

District 16 Democratic primary[35]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Melissa Ratcliff 17,205 52.04
Democratic Jimmy Anderson 10,258 31.03
Democratic Samba Baldeh 5,575 16.86
Write-in 25 0.07
Total votes 33,063 100.0
District 16 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Melissa Ratcliff
Total votes

District 18

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Incumbent Republican Dan Feyen was moved into the 20th district due to redistricting, leaving the district open. Two Republicans filed to succeed Feyen, being Anthony Phillips and Blong Yang. Phillips defeated Yang by a wide margin and will face Democrat Kristin Alfheim in the general election.

District 18 Republican primary[35]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Anthony Phillips 8,611 62.17
Republican Blong Yang 5,226 37.73
Write-in 13 0.10
Total votes 13,850 100.0
District 18 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Anthony Phillips
Democratic Kristin Alfheim
Total votes

District 20

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Incumbent Repulican Duey Stroebel was drawn into the 8th district as a result of redistricting, while Dan Feyen was drawn into this district from the 18th due to redistricting. In the primary, Feyen faced former Republican representative and election denier Timothy Ramthun. Feyen advanced to the general election, where he will face Democrat Michael Rapp.

District 20 Republican primary[35]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Dan Feyen (incumbent) 17,243 64.29
Republican Timothy Ramthun 9,543 35.59
Write-in 31 0.12
Total votes 26,817 100.0
District 20 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Dan Feyen (incumbent)
Democratic Michael Rapp
Total votes

District 22

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Incumbent Democrat Robert Wirch is running for re-election unopposed.

District 22 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Robert Wirch (incumbent)
Total votes

District 24

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Incumbent Republican Patrick Testin is seeking re-election. In the general election he will face Democrat Collin McNamara.

District 24 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Patrick Testin (incumbent)
Democratic Collin McNamara
Total votes

District 26

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Incumbent Democrat Kelda Roys is running for re-election unopposed.

District 26 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kelda Roys (incumbent)
Total votes

District 28

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Incumbent Republican Julian Bradley is seeking re-election after being drawn out of this district due to redistricting. In the general election he will face Democrat Megan Lach.

District 28 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Julian Bradley (incumbent)
Democratic Megan Lach
Total votes

District 30

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Incumbent Republican Eric Wimberger declined to seek re-election in this district, instead opting to run for the neighboring 2nd district, leaving this district open.

District 30 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jim Rafter
Democratic Jamie Wall
Total votes

District 32

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Incumbent Democrat Brad Pfaff is running for re-election. In the general election he faces Republican and former candidate for U.S. Senate Stacey Klein.

District 32 general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Brad Pfaff (incumbent)
Republican Stacey Klein
Total votes

Predictions

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Source Ranking As of
CNalysis[36] Solid R March 16, 2024

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ This Senator was elected to the 17th Senate district in 2022
  2. ^ This Senator was elected to the 1st Senate district in 2022

References

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  1. ^ "2024 Partisan Primary". elections.wi.gov. April 19, 2023. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  2. ^ Kremer, Rich (February 1, 2024). "Wisconsin Supreme Court consultants say Republican-drawn legislative maps are gerrymanders, don't deserve consideration". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  3. ^ Kremer, Rich (February 19, 2024). "Evers signs new maps into law, effectively ending Wisconsin redistricting lawsuit". WPR. Retrieved June 16, 2024.
  4. ^ Kremer, Rich (February 22, 2024). "What do Wisconsin's new maps mean for the Legislature's balance of power?". WPR. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  5. ^ Karnopp, Hope (February 21, 2024). "You have questions about Wisconsin's new election maps and how they affect you? We have answers". Journal Sentinel. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  6. ^ Walters, Steven (May 14, 2024). "Political parties target five Wisconsin Senate seats without incumbents". Isthmus | Madison, Wisconsin. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  7. ^ "Democrats commit $7 million to TV ads in 5 key state Senate races". AP News. May 8, 2024. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  8. ^ Bauer, Scott (April 9, 2024). "Evers vetoes a Republican-backed bill targeting PFAS chemicals". Associated Press. Retrieved June 4, 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ "Gov. Evers again calls Republican lawmakers into special meeting". Wisconsin Law Journal. May 7, 2024. Retrieved June 4, 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ Spears, Baylor (May 7, 2024). "Democrats target Republicans on budget committee, aim for control of Legislature". Wisconsin Examiner. Retrieved June 4, 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ "Cowles, Wisconsin Senate's longest-serving member, will not seek reelection". WLUK-TV. April 8, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  12. ^ "Knodl campaign: Announces run for 24th Assembly District". WisPolitics. February 29, 2024. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  13. ^ "DRA 2020". Daves Redistricting. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  14. ^ "DRA 2020". Daves Redistricting. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  15. ^ "2024 Wisconsin Senate races". WisPolitics. March 5, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  16. ^ Candidate Tracking by Office - 2024 General Election - 11/13/2024 (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. May 13, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  17. ^ "Peterson campaign: Launches campaign for State Senate". April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  18. ^ "WED PM Update: Wimberger moving to 2nd SD, setting up possibly GOP primary with Cowles". March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  19. ^ "Habush Sinykin campaign: Launches campaign for the 8th State Senate District". April 9, 2024. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  20. ^ "Hambleton campaign: Former teacher Paul Hambleton launches candidacy for Senate District 10". May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  21. ^ "Felzkowski campaign: Announces re-election bid for Wisconsin's 12th Senate District". March 12, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  22. ^ "Rich campaign: Announces candidacy for 12th Senate District". April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  23. ^ "Ballweg campaign: Announces bid for re-election to State Senate". March 6, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  24. ^ "Keyeski campaign: Rural mental healthcare provider launches campaign for the 14th Senate District". April 8, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  25. ^ "Rep. Melissa Ratcliff running for State Senate". November 30, 2023. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  26. ^ "Alfheim campaign: Appleton alderperson launches campaign for State Senate". February 29, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  27. ^ "Philips campaign: Announces State Senate run". April 4, 2024. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  28. ^ "Feyen campaign: Announces reelection campaign in new 20th Senate district". February 27, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  29. ^ "Roys campaign: Launches 2024 re-election campaign". April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  30. ^ "Lach announces bid for State Senate District 28". Waukesha County Freeman. April 23, 2024. Retrieved May 7, 2024 – via GMToday.com.
  31. ^ "Rafter campaign: Allouez Village President Jim Rafter to run for Wisconsin state Senate in the 30th District". April 10, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  32. ^ "Wall campaign: Green Bay small business owner announces bid for state Senate District 30". March 6, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  33. ^ "Klein campaign: Transitions campaign from U.S. Senate to Wisconsin state Senate District 32". Wispolitics. April 9, 2024. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  34. ^ "Pfaff campaign: Announces re-election bid for new 32nd State Senate District". April 4, 2024. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  35. ^ a b c d "2024 Wisconsin State Senate Primary Election Results" (PDF). Wisconsin Elections Commission. August 27, 2024.
  36. ^ "24 WI Forecast". projects.cnalysis.com. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
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