Trump’s win in Wisconsin by less than a percentage point broke the streak for Democratic presidential nominees — they had won the seven elections before 2016. Close races are typical in the Badger State. Al Gore and John Kerry both won by less than half a point. See 2020 primary results
COUNTIES TO WATCH
WOW Counties: Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington
These three suburban counties tend to move as a group. They typically lean Republican, but Hillary Clinton outperformed past Democratic candidates there, as did Democrat Tony Evers in his 2018 bid for governor.
Dane County
This fast-growing county is home to the University of Wisconsin at Madison and is a Democratic stronghold.
Kenosha County
South of Milwaukee, it is one of the largest counties in the state to swing from Barack Obama to Donald Trump. Democrat Tony Evers carried it in 2018.
Milwaukee County
Turnout in the largest county in Wisconsin dropped a bit from 2012 to 2016, and Hillary Clinton underperformed Barack Obama's numbers here, the dropoff was larger than Donald Trump's winning margin in the state.
Grant County
In Southwest Wisconsin, this county made a double-digit shift from Obama support in 2012 to Trump support in 2016. In 2018, Grant plus surrounding Crawford, Richland and Vernon broke for Democrat Tony Evers in the gubernatorial race. Grant is one of the largest Southwest counties with this pattern.