In early February, 2011 as Governor Walker proclaimed his Budget Repair Bill was being put forward as a mandate from the people of Wisconsin I began to wonder just how big his mandate was! So I did a little digging to get some facts from sources that seem reliable! The result is the attached 'WHY VOTE' page!
Why Vote!?
Governor Walker was elected by only ~26% of the Voting age population of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Voter Turnout 11/2010 49.56% 2,160,832 VAP 4,330,695 (Source: Wi GAB)
Wisconsin Voter Turnout 11/2008 69.20% 2,996,869 VAP ~4,370,000 (Source: Wi GAB)
Approximate Difference in ~20% 836,000
Turnout
(Subtract Falloff ~ matches population growth)
Assume 2008 as Actual Voter Base for Major Parties
(allows imputation of voting falloff by party from 2008 to 2010)
Total Falloff -806360
Walker Votes 2010 1,128,941
McCain Votes 2008 1,262,393 (Wikipedia)
Falloff 11% -133,452
Barrett Votes 2010 1,004,303 (Wikipedia)
Obama Votes 2008 1,677,211
Falloff 40% -672,908
Walker's 2010 Win - Voter Margin 124,638
In summary, Governor Walker was elected by a very, very slim margin of 124,638 votes,less than 5.8% of the votes cast. Governor Walker was elected by only ~26% of the Voting age population of Wisconsin.
This assumes that voter preference was not wildly different from 2010 than it was in 2008. If Barrett had a Falloff of just 11% he easily would have been Governor by a margin of ~363,177 votes
Terms:
VAP - Voting Age Population
GAB - Governmental Accountabily Board
WI 1848 Forward: Why #Vote !? #Governor 4-YR #Election Cycle Non-Presidential - #walker #47% #99% #wiunion #voterID
