Facebook recently started up an election '06 section to profiles. You can Facebook Jim Doyle, Herb Kohl, and Tammy Baldwin. Give it a look.

Via Political Wire, one of the best sources of political news, this priceless quote that hopefully isn't accurate:

"We Democrats are just, well, confused."

-- Senator Barak Obama (D-IL)

The kickoff meeting was amazing! Thank you to everyone who came out and packed the room. Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton was impressed by how much UW-Madison cares about this election and how energized and dedicated we are. Also, another big thank you to all the people who have signed up to volunteer in the next couple months - we are going to need everybody working hard until November 7 to Keep Wisconsin Blue!

We got a lot of great press coverage, too. Check it out at The Badger Herald (Hundreds Pack Lecture Hall for College Democrats Kickoff) and The Daily Cardinal (UW Democrats Strategize for November). Hundreds did honestly pack the lecture hall. The kickoff was in 3650 Humanities - one of the largest lecture halls on campus, with capacity for 500 - and there were very few empty seats. Thanks for helping us show how much support Governor Doyle and Lt. Gov. Lawton and the rest of the Democratic ticket have on our campus!

Eli Lewien, Chair, started off the kickoff by introducing the Executive Board as students were filing in and enjoying (free!) Rocky's pizza. There were a lot of great speakers to start off the meeting, including Alderman Austin King and Representative Mark Pocan. Also speaking later in the evening were representatives from Fair Wisconsin, Falk for Attorney General, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, and Students for Tammy Baldwin. Other notable individuals who attended the kickoff included Awais Khaleel, Vice President of the College Democrats of America and former Chair of the College Democrats of Wisconsin, and Brian Shactman, First Vice Chair of the College Democrats of Wisconsin and Campus Coordinator for UW-Madison.

The highlight of the evening, however, was definitely Lt. Gov. Lawton. She entered to The Black Eyed Peas "Let's Get it Started," and the energy never left the room after that. She spoke about Governor Doyle's commitment to students: providing financial aid, stem cell research, access to birth control on campus, and voting rights. Republicans like Mark Green, the LG said, are stuck in the past and we as Democrats have to drag them forward into the 21st century on our backs. And we have the strength and the numbers and the statewide support to do that in November!

As the Lt. Governor emphasized, we need you as students to volunteer and dedicate your time and effort in helping Governor Doyle and the rest of the Democratic ticket get elected on November 7, retake the state legislature, and defeat the discriminatory amendment to ban civil unions. We had over 100 students sign up to volunteer with us at the kickoff - but we need more! We need you to come out, do some chalking, drop some lit, make a few phone calls, staff a few tabling sessions and just get involved!

We were also selling t-shirts and buttons (some that said 92% - how often Mark Green votes against students and with George W. Bush) at the kickoff. If you're interested in buying one, stop by the Field Office at 206 State St, next door to the Orpheum. Also, feel free to pop in any time to volunteer, pick up some bumper stickers and window signs, or just say hi to the friendly staff!

The College Democrats are vital to winning this election. You as students have power and a voice that can not be silenced. Thank you so much for coming to the kickoff. We hope you had a great time, because we definitely did. If you missed the kickoff, there is a video of it up on our website under "Videos." Keep watching the listserve for more ways to get involved. Don't hesistate to contact me or Eli or any E-Board member at any time!

The kickoff is only the beginning...

Yesterday, states around the nation (including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Vermont, Arizona, Rhode Island, Maryland, Delaware, New Hampshire, and New York as well as the District of Columbia) held primaries to select candidates from both parties up and down the ticket for the 2006 midterm elections.

Having trouble making sense of the clutter of election returns? Here is a rundown of the results from the hottest races from around the state.

Via WKOW TV:

· With 97% of precincts reporting, Senator Herb Kohl beat back a challenge from anti-war activist Ben Masel, crushing him 86%-14%.

· Similarly, with 89% of precincts reporting, Representative Ron Kind in the 3rd Congressional District easily beat Chip De Nure, winning 83% of the vote.

· With 97% of precincts reporting, incumbent Secretary of State Doug La Follette overwhelmingly beat political consultant Scot Ross with 71% of the vote. Scot ran a solid, energetic, grassroots campaign, but it proved no match for the Madison political establishment which endorsed La Follette (and, of course, his famous name).

· One of the more competitive House districts in the country, Wisconsin's 8th Congressional, became an open seat after Mark Green vacated it to run for governor against Jim Doyle. State Assembly Speaker John Gard was overwhelmingly backed (even earning fundraisers with the President and Vice-President) for the Republican nomination against opponent Representative Terri McCormick and beat her by more than a two-to-one margin. However, an interesting three-way race developed between Physician Steve Kagan, Businessman Jamie Wall, and former Brown County Executive Nancy Nusbaum. Respectively, the candidates earned 48%, 29%, and 24% of the vote with 96% of precincts reporting. Kagan is independently very wealthy and self-funded most of his campaign. This well help prevent Gard from overwhelming him financially in the general election. Finally, a recent internal poll for Kagan found him very competitive with Gard (beating him by 10 percentage points among likely voters).

· The closest race in the primary, however, was that for Wisconsin Attorney General. Incumbent Democrat Peg Lautenschlager was narrowly defeated by fellow Democrat Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk 53%-47% with 97% of precincts reporting. She threw her hat into the ring after Lautenschlager's drunk driving episode in a state vehicle, arguing it would be a liability for the Democrats fighting to retain the seat. She will face off with Republican J.B. Van Hollen who beat Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher. Van Hollen is the more socially conservative candidate, having earned the endorsements of the National Rifle Association and Wisconsin Right to Life.

·Governor Jim Doyle and Representative Mark Green were not opposed for their parties' nominations for Wisconsin Governor.

Full Primary Election Results

The bottom line: whatever divisions and disagreements we had in the primaries, Democrats need to unite in support of the choices of the Democratic primary voters. We all need to work hard from now until election day. There are a lot of important races on the ballot this November, and we all need to find one we're passionate about and do our part to keep Wisconsin a blue state.

Don't forget to come to the College Democrats' kickoff meeting tonight,
Wednesday, September 13 at 6:00 pm in 3650 Humanities. Lt. Governor Lawton will be speaking, as well as Representative Mark Pocan. Free pizza will be served!