Wisconsin kicks off election season with first widely available absentee ballots

The presidential race begins for thousands of voters today as Wisconsin starts mailing ballots to eligible voters.

With one point separating Vice President Harris and former President Trump in the Badger State, the campaigns are set to spend the next 47 days fighting for every ballot.

Voting begins in some form for many voters in more than half of all states by the end of the month, including Michigan and North Carolina.

Wisconsin is one of the most competitive states this cycle

Wisconsin is one of three Rust Belt states that voted for Trump in 2016, then flipped back to the Democrats in 2020. President Biden won the state by just 20,682 votes or 0.7 points.

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Like the other competitive midwestern states, it is defined by its White working class population. Fifty-eight percent of the state’s voters are White without a college degree according to the Fox News Voter Analysis. That is fifteen points higher than the national electorate.

Those voters favored Trump by 11 points in the last presidential cycle, and he will look to build on that margin to put this state back into the GOP’s column.

For Democrats, the goal is to keep turnout high in the cities and surrounding areas by activating Black and suburban voters. There are highly populated pockets of deep blue vote in Milwaukee and Madison, and the counties that those cities call home make up nearly a quarter of the statewide vote.

Key races in Wisconsin

Wisconsin also has a Senate race and eight U.S. House races on the ballot. The most competitive include:

• Senate: Democratic senator Tammy Baldwin will face Republican banker Eric Hovde as she seeks a third term. The race is ranked Lean D on the Fox News Power Rankings.
• Wisconsin’s 1st district: Republican Rep. Bryan Steil has held this southeastern district including Kenosha since 2019; this time, he’s up against local Democrat Peter Barca. This race is Likely R on the Power Rankings.
• Wisconsin’s 3rd district: GOP Rep. Derrick Van Orden was one of a handful of Republicans to flip a seat in the midterms, and his district includes a handful of blue-leaning areas like Eau Claire and La Crosse. He faces Democratic small business owner Rebecca Cooke. This race is also Likely R on the Power Rankings.

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