Leah Vukmir’s U.S. Senate primary win means that whatever the general election outcome, it’s all but certain to produce a winning woman.
Vukmir, a Brookfield Republican, will face the Democratic incumbent, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, of Madison, in the Nov. 6 general election. Vukmir earned the nod by beating fellow Republican Kevin Nicholson in Tuesday’s primary.
For Wisconsin, it’s the first time two women became the major-party nominees for U.S. Senate.
That comes as record numbers of women nationwide are running for office — and so far, winning — up and down the ticket in 2018, according to data from Rutgers University’s Center for American Women and Politics.
“All records are being broken for women candidates this year,” said the center’s associate director, Jean Sinzdak. “We’re seeing a lot of women say things like: ‘I didn’t want to sit on the sidelines anymore.’”
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The trend also comes as more women are speaking out and joining the activist ranks. Examples include the national women’s marches in 2017 and 2018 and the ongoing #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct and harassment.
The center found Tuesday’s primary results in Wisconsin cemented a record number of women nominees for U.S. Senate, at 19 so far. Similar records in women filing and winning primaries have been set this year in governor’s and U.S. House races.
Baldwin is no stranger to female firsts. She became Wisconsin’s first female U.S. senator when she won her first term in 2012, also becoming the first openly gay person elected to the U.S. Senate.
Vukmir becomes the second Republican woman nominated for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin. Susan Engeleiter was the first in 1988; she lost narrowly that year to Democrat Herb Kohl in his first bid for Senate.
Neither the Baldwin nor Vukmir campaigns responded to requests for comment Wednesday.
Asked in May about the record numbers of women candidates in 2018, Vukmir said it was positive but added she “never looked at that as an issue as I’ve been an elected official.”
“I represent men; I represent women,” Vukmir said. “I haven’t looked at it as: ‘I’m a female legislator.’”
Sinzdak said most of the uptick in women candidates in 2018 comes from those running as Democrats — and much of that appears to be driven by opposition to Republican President Donald Trump.
Vukmir has been a staunch Trump supporter throughout her Senate campaign. Footage of Vukmir calling Trump “offensive to everyone” in early 2016 surfaced at the end of her primary bid and was emphasized by Nicholson. But it appears not to have significantly hampered her candidacy.
Trump used his Twitter account to salute Vukmir on Wednesday morning after her primary win, saying she has “my complete and total Endorsement!”
“You beat a very tough and good competitor and will make a fantastic Senator after winning in November against someone who has done very little,” Trump said.
Republican Margaret Farrow, who became Wisconsin’s first female lieutenant governor in 2001 and was a Vukmir supporter in this campaign, said her ties to Vukmir date to before Vukmir was first elected in 2002, when she was “just was a mother concerned about her kids’ education.”
“I felt all along Vukmir would be our strongest candidate” in this election, Farrow said.
Farrow said there could be a benefit for Republicans in nominating a woman to oppose Baldwin — in part because she said Vukmir “will be able to debate Baldwin on an equal footing.”
Baldwin “can’t use the excuse that you’re picking on me because you’re a man,” Farrow said.
“If this is the year of the woman, well, we match them, and it’s woman to woman,” Farrow added. “But I do not think this should be the focus of this campaign.”
Congratulations to Leah Vukmir of Wisconsin on your great win last night. You beat a very tough and good competitor and will make a fantastic Senator after winning in November against someone who has done very little. You have my complete and total Endorsement!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 15, 2018