Recall candidates look to sway voters in push prior to primary

RACINE – During the final weekend of campaigning before Wisconsin’s historic recall primary on Tuesday, May 8th, the major candidates for governor criss-crossed the state in an effort to sway voters.

Governor Scott Walker had a full schedule that took him from La Crosse to Eau Claire to Racine, where he visited campaign volunteers working in a phone bank. Walker said his goal is to drive voter turnout. “I'm going to ask for your vote on Tuesday, May 8th -- because I have a primary," Walker said.

Meantime, Tom Barrett, who leads in most polls for the Democratic nomination, visited a pancake breakfast in Racine. "Over this weekend, the key is to get out and meet people,” Barrett said.

The Marquette University Law School Poll released this week showed voters view “jobs” as the top issue in the campaign, and the two leading candidates seemed to be looking past the primary -- and locking horns on that issue in a rematch of the 2010 election.

Barrett criticized Walker's record on helping to create jobs in Wisconsin. "Instead of creating 250,000 new jobs, Wisconsin lost more jobs than any other state under leadership," Barrett said.

Walker said the state's economy as a whole is doing better than it was before he took office. Walker argued that Milwaukee is dragging down the state's economy. “The reason Mayor Barrett is talking about other things is because unemployment in Milwaukee has gone up 29 percent,” Walker said.

Kathleen Falk, Kathleen Vinehout and Doug La Follette are also vying for the Democratic nomination – but the Marquette Poll showed Barrett with a commanding lead over all of them.