Doyle wins, sees 'a new day'
0:47 AM 11/06/02
Scott Milfred State government reporter

Democrat Jim Doyle promised to "change the way we do business in Madison" early this morning after being elected the 44th governor of Wisconsin.

"Restoring integrity at the Capitol will be a top priority," Doyle told a raucous crowd of supporters at the Marriott Madison West hotel in Middleton shortly after midnight. "No matter what else we accomplish in the next four years, it won't be enough unless the people of Wisconsin believe their elected leaders are honest."

Doyle, 56, the first Democratic governor in 16 years, defeated incumbent Republican Gov. Scott McCallum, 52, by a small but clear margin after the most expensive governor's race in history. It also was one of the nastiest, coming at the same time as the state's worst corruption scandal in the Legislature.

"It's a new day for Wisconsin," Doyle said repeatedly.

He also promised to fix the state's massive state budget deficit "the old-fashioned way, with real numbers and tough choices."

Control of the state Legislature appeared to be shifting early today entirely to the Republicans, who previously had controlled only the Assembly. The race for attorney general was too close to call.

U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, easily defeated Republican challenger Ron Greer to earn a third term representing south-central Wisconsin.

McCallum conceded to Doyle shortly before midnight in front of supporters at the Concourse Hotel in Downtown Milwaukee. He said he wished Doyle well during a phone call.

"It was a hard-fought campaign because so much was at stake," McCallum said. "It's time to heal and begin moving Wisconsin forward as one."

McCallum called serving in the state's highest office "a tremendous honor." He campaigned hard, putting 50,000 miles on his red, white and blue campaign bus.

"Under very difficult circumstances, we made this a race," said Rick Graber, head of the Republican Party of Wisconsin.

Thompson, 57, watching election returns at his Mr. Ed's Tee Pee Supper Club in Tomah, said he was proud of his showing given his lack of money and no TV ads. If he hung on to at least 10 percent of the vote, his Libertarian Party will get representation on the state Elections Board.

"We're going to be a force," said the colorful former Tomah mayor and younger brother of former Gov. Tommy Thompson. "No matter what happens, I think we changed the face of politics in Wisconsin for a long time to come."

As for his future, Thompson said: "I'm not a quitter, and I think there's a lot more to do yet."

The Associated Press declared Doyle the winner at 10:58 p.m. Tuesday.

The state's giant state budget deficit and ongoing corruption scandal were key issues in the race.

Attorney General Doyle, like McCallum, repeatedly pledged not to raise taxes to fix the state's projected budget deficit. That will be a hard promise to keep, said UW-Madison political science professor Dennis Dresang.

"The enormity of the budget crisis, not just for one year but maybe for two years or more - you just can't accomplish it with just cuts," Dresang said Tuesday night.

Doyle's campaign spent the final days stressing the state's money problems under McCallum. The Democratic Party also blasted McCallum in ads for his frequent use of a state airplane and free use of a pleasure boat.

McCallum ran ads claiming Doyle had bribed mentally ill people for votes. The ad was based more on conjecture than facts.

The next governor has to tackle a projected annual state budget deficit of $1.3 billion next year.

To save money, Doyle has said he'll cut the number of state government jobs by 2 percent, which equals about 1,500 positions each year he's in office. Doyle also would reduce state dollars for school construction projects while lifting state-imposed limits on teacher salaries.

The candidates for governor spent at least $17.5 million on the race, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a group that tallies campaign contributions. With special interest and political party dollars added in, the race was sure to cost more than $20.7 million, the group estimated.

Kevin Kennedy, executive director of the state Elections Board, estimated that about 40 percent of voters statewide would head to the polls.

Green Party candidate for governor Jim Young conceded early Tuesday night in a distant fourth. The 42-year-old city of Sun Prairie assessor hoped his third party would continue to build momentum.

He noted that the two major party candidates for governor started talking about water quality during the campaign. Young also thinks his push to help small farmers gained attention. "A movement of people really can take a while to grow," Young said.