In a stunning upset of the political order in Wisconsin, Democrat Tony Evers won the governor’s race Tuesday ousting two-term Republican incumbent Scott Walker.
Unofficial results show Evers beat Walker by about 29,000 votes, or just over 1 percentage point, out of more than 2.6 million votes cast. State law only permits recounts for losing candidates who are within 1 percentage point.
State law triggers a free recount of the results if the margin between the candidates is 0.25 percent or less and the candidate who lost the initial count by that margin requests one. If margin is more than 0.25 percent but no more than 1 percent, the losing candidate may petition and pay for a recount.
Evers’ win means control of state government will be divided for the first time since the 2007-09 session. Republicans gained back a Senate seat in a district they had lost during a special election over the summer. Otherwise the composition of the Assembly remained unchanged.