The Democratic Party of Wisconsin is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is currently headed by chair Ben Wikler.
The 1998 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1998. Incumbent Governor Tommy Thompson won re-election for the third time with nearly 60% of the vote. As of 2022, this is most recent gubernatorial election in which Milwaukee, Rock, Portage, and Iowa counties voted for the Republican candidate, and the most recent where the winner garnered a double digit margin of victory. Gary George unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination.
The 2010 Wisconsin gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 2010, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Wisconsin. The primary elections on September 14 determined which candidates advanced to the general election.
United States gubernatorial elections were held in 12 states and two territories. Of the eight Democratic and four Republican seats contested, only that of North Carolina changed party hands, giving the Republicans a net gain of one governorship. These elections coincided with the presidential election on November 6, 2012. As of 2024, this marked the last time in which a Democrat won the governorship in Missouri and the last time in which a Republican won the governorship in North Carolina.
Benjamin McDonald Wikler is an American organizer, political figure, and the chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin since July 2019. He is a former senior advisor at MoveOn. He has been called the "preeminent state party chair.”
J. Mandela Barnes is an American politician who served as the 45th lieutenant governor of Wisconsin from 2019 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the state representative for the 11th district from 2013 to 2017. Barnes is the first African American to serve as Wisconsin's lieutenant governor.
The 2014 Wisconsin gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014, to determine the governor and lieutenant governor of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It occurred concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
The 2018 Wisconsin gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018. It occurred concurrently with a Senate election in the state, elections to the state's U.S. House seats, and various other elections. Incumbent Republican governor Scott Walker sought re-election to a third term, and was challenged by Democratic candidate and then-Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers, as well as Libertarian Phil Anderson and independent Maggie Turnbull. Evers, along with his running mate Mandela Barnes, managed to defeat Walker and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch in a closely fought and widely watched race, ending the state's Republican trifecta.
The 2022 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate from Wisconsin. The party primaries were held on August 9, 2022. Incumbent Republican Senator Ron Johnson won election to a third term, defeating Democratic Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes by 26,718 votes—a one-point margin of victory.
The 2024 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Wisconsin. Incumbent Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin won re-election to a third term, narrowly defeating Republican nominee Eric Hovde.
The 2022 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Wisconsin. Incumbent Democratic Governor Tony Evers won re-election to a second term by a margin of 3.4%, defeating Republican nominee Tim Michels.
The 2026 United States Senate elections are scheduled to be held on November 3, 2026, with 33 of the 100 seats in the Senate being contested in regular elections, the winners of which will serve six-year terms in the United States Congress from January 3, 2027, to January 3, 2033. Senators are divided into three groups, or classes, whose terms are staggered so that a different class is elected every two years. Class 2 senators were last elected in 2020 and will be up for election in this cycle.
The 2026 United States Senate election in Michigan will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Michigan. Incumbent Democratic Senator Gary Peters declined to seek re-election to a third term. Peters was first elected with 54.6% of the vote in 2014, and re-elected with 49.9% of the vote in 2020. Along with Georgia, this is one of two Democratic-held Senate seats up for election in a state that Donald Trump won in the 2024 presidential election.
The 2022 Wisconsin fall general election was held in the U.S. state of Wisconsin on November 8, 2022. All of Wisconsin's partisan executive and administrative offices were up for election, as well as one of Wisconsin's U.S. Senate seats, and Wisconsin's eight seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. The fall election also filled the seventeen odd-numbered seats in the Wisconsin Senate and all 99 seats in the Wisconsin State Assembly for the 106th Wisconsin Legislature. The 2022 Wisconsin fall primary was held on August 9, 2022.
The 2025 Virginia gubernatorial election will be held on November 4, 2025, to elect the governor of Virginia. Incumbent Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin will be ineligible to run for re-election, as the Constitution of Virginia prohibits the state's governors from serving consecutive terms. Primary elections will take place on June 17, 2025.
United States gubernatorial elections are scheduled to be held on November 3, 2026, in 36 states and three territories. The previous gubernatorial elections for this group of states took place in 2022, except in New Hampshire and Vermont, where governors serve two-year terms and elected their governors in 2024. Fifteen of the thirty-six states with elections in this cycle have officially term-limited incumbents. While two of the three United States territories with elections this cycle have officially term-limited incumbents.
The 2026 Arizona gubernatorial election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the governor of Arizona. Incumbent Democratic governor Katie Hobbs is eligible to seek re-election to a second term, but has not yet stated whether she will do so.
The 2026 Kansas gubernatorial election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the next governor of Kansas. Incumbent Democratic Governor Laura Kelly is term-limited and ineligible to seek a third consecutive term. This will be one of five Democratic-held governorships up for election in 2026 in a state that Donald Trump won in the 2024 presidential election and the only one of those states that Trump won by a double-digit margin.
The 2026 Michigan gubernatorial election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the governor of Michigan. Incumbent Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist are term-limited and are ineligible to seek a third term. This will be one of five Democratic-held governorships up for election in 2026 in a state won by Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
The 2025 Democratic National Committee chairmanship election is expected to be held on February 1, 2025, at the party's winter meeting in National Harbor, Maryland, to determine the next chairperson of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Jaime Harrison has announced that he will not seek another term as chair of the party.
