General elections for the Wisconsin State Assembly will take place on Nov. 3.
According to reporting from the Wisconsin Examiner, President Donald Trump's (R) low approval rating and voter dissatisfaction with Republican leadership in Washington could benefit Democrats in Wisconsin. In an interview with The New York Times, Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R) said Republicans have recruited "pragmatic center-right candidates." Marquette Law School research fellow John Johnson says, "There are demonstrably enough voters in those [key] districts who will vote for a Democrat, so that’s the optimistic case for Assembly Democrats. The optimistic case for Assembly Republicans is that Assembly Republican candidates tend to be more popular than other kinds of Republicans, and so that’s what they’re going to be counting on."
Heading into the election, Republicans have a 54-45 majority. All districts are up for election this year. Democrats need to win at least five Republican districts, while maintaining their own, to gain a majority in the Assembly. Republicans can lose no more than four districts to maintain their majority. Republicans have held a majority since 2011.
