Republican Running In Democrats' Wis. Primary Election
HUDSON, Wis. (WCCO) -- In a strange twist, Wisconsin's primary on Tuesday will feature one candidate who doesn't even want to be in office.
In March, Republicans in Wisconsin pushed through controversial budget bills, leading to a series or recall races, including a state senate race in western Wisconsin that's gotten a lot of attention here in the Twin Cities.
Now, campaign signs are everywhere in Hudson, Wisconsin. For Republican Sheila Harsdorf, who's facing a recall election, and Democrat Shelly Moore, now a familiar face on Twin Cities TV advertisements.
"When people don't feel that they've been listened to, as George Washington said, that's the time for them to be recalled," said Moore.
However, before Moore meets Harsdorf, she'll have to beat a staunch Republican in the Democrats' primary.
Hardware store owner Isaac Weix says the Republican Party asked him to run, because forcing a primary now delays the general election until August, giving Harsdorf time to campaign after the session.
In other words, it's more about strategy than issues.
"When this process is over, I'm not going to be the next Senator from the 10th Senate District, so my issues are irrelevant," said Weix.
"My fake opponent in the primary has given us the ultimate opportunity to educate people more about the real election," said Moore.
They stand far apart on just about every issue. So it's no surprise that they disagree about this primary, as well.
"It'll just be a bellwether to where everybody sits. If I win the primary, there's no way that Shelly could have won the general anyway," said Weix.
