Crawford County voter turnout 93 percent
By Correne Martin
The chosen presidential candidate was yet to be determined at press time Wednesday morning; however, President Donald Trump carried Crawford County’s vote Tuesday, according to the Crawford County Clerk’s Office. Trump received 4,620 votes—or 53 percent of the votes cast, while former Vice President Joe Biden earned 3,953 votes in the county. Exactly 122 votes were thrown to other presidential candidates by county residents.
Voter turnout in Crawford County was at an astounding 93.3 percent.
For the one regional seat without an incumbent in the running, the 32nd State Senate District formerly held by Jennifer Shilling, Brad Pfaff (D-Onalaska) was determined the Senator-elect over opponent Dan Kapanke (R-La Crosse). Crawford County finished in contrast to the 32nd district as a whole, ending up with Kapanke as the more popular candidate with 4,903 votes—or nearly 57 percent—over Pfaff’s 3,714.
Years ago, in 2004, Kapanke defeated Pfaff, who was then-La Crosse County Board supervisor. Kapanke won re-election to the seat in 2008, but then lost a recall election in 2011 to Shilling.
Pfaff was raised on a dairy farm in northern La Crosse County and has dedicated his career to Wisconsin farmers and rural communities. The 32nd Senate District includes La Crosse, Vernon, Crawford and Monroe Counties.
“I am honored by the outpouring of support from residents in every corner of the 32nd Senate District,” Pfaff said in a statement. “From the moment I announced my candidacy, it was clear that families shared my concerns about the future of our state and the partisan divisions that have paralyzed our Legislature.”
In a tight race for Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional seat, incumbent Democrat Ron Kind overcame a good fight from Republican Derrick Van Orden. Kind received 199,216 votes, or 51.5 percent of the total votes, as compared to Van Orden’s 187,966 votes.
In Crawford County, 4,551 ballots, or almost 53 percent, were cast for Kind and 4,055 for his challenger.
In a statement upon regaining his position, Kind said, “I know firsthand the challenges working families in Wisconsin face, and I am committed to fighting for the farmers, veterans, families, businesses, and workers who move our state forward. I’m truly humbled by the opportunity to continue working for the people of Wisconsin’s Third Congressional District, standing up to powerful special interests, bridging the partisan divide, and bringing our Wisconsin way of life to the halls of Congress.”
In another local race, incumbent Republican Loren Oldenburg won reelection to the 96th Assembly, beating out political newcomer Josefine Jaynes. Oldenburg received 16,812 votes district-wide and 4,512 picks in Crawford County. Jaynes had as many as 13,066 votes from district electors, and 4,008 from Crawford County. This was a victory of 52.9 percent for Oldenburg in the county.
In unopposed county races, District Attorney Lukas Steiner, County Clerk Robin Fisher, County Treasurer Deanne Lutz and Register of Deeds Melissa Nagel all regained their jobs after Tuesday’s election.
Finally, in the advisory redistricting referendum asking whether the Legislature should create a nonpartisan process for legislative and congressional district maps, Crawford County overwhelmingly supported the measure. There were 5,544 “yes” votes, compared to 2,380 “no” votes. The Courier Press was unable to gather by press time whether this referendum also passed in other counties voting, including Adams, Bayfield, Brown, Door, Dunn, Iowa, Jefferson, Kenosha, Rusk and Waushara.
