Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s job is safe.
Walker defeated Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett 53 percent to 47 percent with 97 percent reporting. The governor garnered 60 percent of the vote for Jefferson County, as opposed to 39 percent for Barrett. Walworth County was also won by Walker, taking 64 percent of the vote, while Barrett took 35 percent. After knowing that a recall election was imminent since February 2011, Wisconsinites finally know who their governor will be at least until 2014.
Walker is the first governor in U.S. history to win a recall election. 
“Bringing our state together will take some time, but I hope to start right away,” Walker said Tuesday night to a crowd at his campaign headquarters at the Waukesha Expo Center in Waukesha, Wis. “It is time to put our differences aside and figure out ways that we can move Wisconsin forward.”
The first step towards Tuesday’s recall election was the fury of protests by those who were against the Budget Repair Bill passed by the state senate and signed into a law by Walker. The law made it more difficult for state workers to form unions.
In what was expected to be a quiet election, Justice David Prosser faced an intensely contested election by Wisconsin Asst. Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenberg. Although judges and justices don’t have party affiliation, Prosser is considered to lean conservative and Kloppenburg liberal. Prosser won the election in a narrow margin. On May 8th, more voters supported Gov. Walker, who wasn’t facing a serious contender in his primary, than all of the Democrat candidates combined.
Also victorious Tuesday night were three GOP state assembly members and one too close to call who faced recalls of their own. Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch also was victorious in her recall battle Tuesday night.
Walker raised more than $30 million dollars, including a considerable amount of out-of-state money, while Barrett raised less than $4 million. Both candidates also attracted big names to help in their respective campaigns. On Friday, Barrett was joined by former President Bill Clinton, while Walker has been assisted in his campaign by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio from Florida. 
Some Democrats were disturbed by President Obama’s reluctance to help Barrett with his campaign. Obama simply sent out a tweet on Tuesday, declaring his support for Barrett. Despite having fundraisers for his own 2012 campaign in Chicago and Minneapolis, Minn., the president did not make a stop in Wisconsin to assist Barrett, a fellow Democrat, despite having to fly over Wisconsin between fundraisers.
But it’s over now.
With the dust settling from the recall election, Wisconsinites will now shift their focus on state assembly races, a race to replace Sen. Herb Kohl, and the presidential race–all taking place in November.
