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January 17, 2012 Groups Filing Signatures to Recall Wisconsin Governor FROM CHICAGOTRIBUNE.COM: MADISON, Wis. -- Groups seeking to recall Gov. Scott Walker submitted nearly twice as many signatures Tuesday as required to force an election, an overwhelming number that may make a vote later this year inevitable. But Walker's opponents still must transform public outrage over his pushback against unions into actual votes to oust him from office. If Walker is worried, he's not showing it: As petitions were delivered to election officials, Walker was out of state raising money to defend himself and the agenda that has made him a national conservative hero. The 1 million signatures that United Wisconsin, the coalition that spearheaded the effort along with the Democratic Party, said were collected far exceeds the 540,208 needed and amounts to 23 percent of the state's eligible voters. Efforts to recall Walker stemmed from anger over his aggressive moves during his first year in office that included effectively ending collective bargaining rights for nearly all public workers. Petitioners were also submitting about 305,000 more signatures than were needed to trigger a recall election against Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, and said they also exceeded the number needed to force recall elections of four Republican state senators, including Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald. The massive number of signatures against Walker means his supporters would have to successfully challenge about 46 percent of them to stop an election. "I don't know if it's insurmountable, but it would be extremely difficult," said Joshua Spivak, a recall expert and senior fellow at Wagner College in New York. During the recall of California Gov. Gray Davis in 2003, petitioners also turned in almost double what was needed and only about 18 percent were tossed, Spivak said. Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate said given the number of signatures collected, Walker shouldn't seek delays and instead let the vote proceed. "Does anyone really honestly believe we're not going to have an election?" Tate said. Walker has expressed confidence he will survive a recall and that voters will reward him for balancing a $3.6 billion budget shortfall without laying off state employees or raising taxes. His campaign spokeswoman Ciara Matthews said he was not available for comment Tuesday, but he did appear on Wisconsin and national conservative talk radio shows to criticize the recall process and defend his record. |
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