Wisconsin Recount Ordered In State Senate Race Between John Lehman, Van Wanggaard

Wisconsin's board of elections has approved a request from state Sen. Van Wanggaard (R-Racine), officially ordering a recount in a recall election that some had thought had been settled in Wisconsin's 21st district.

The Associated Press reports that the state's Government Accountability Board issued the order on Monday afternoon, asking county officials to begin the process at 9 a.m. local time on Wednesday.

Democrats had earlier called on Wanggaard to concede to his recall challenger, Democrat John Lehman, who had already declared victory. The Racine County clerk had also certified the win, but Wanggaard's campaign had expressed concerns about the accuracy of the close vote, which showed the two candidates separated by about 834 votes, or 1.2 percent of around 72,000 votes cast. Wanggaard requested the recount on Friday.

The race holds statewide and national implications because it will decide which party controls the state Senate, which is split at 16 senators for each party, pending the results of this race. Furthermore, Lehman's apparent triumph was held up as a bright spot by Democrats who experienced a massive disappointment in the broader recall effort when they failed in their effort to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) and other Republicans.

Racine County will have until July 2 to complete the recount process.

Below, a playlist to describe the unsuccessful push to recall Scott Walker:

• Let's Get It On: Wave Election Sweeps In Conservatives

  In 2010, a surge of Tea Party momentum and backlash against Democrats helped elect conservatives including Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/02/AR2010110208185.html" target="_hplink">became the state's first Republican governor since 2002</a>. Walker promised to cut taxes and create 250,000 new jobs, but <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/19/AR2011021904205.html" target="_hplink">a deeper look into his past</a> also showed a politician who had inflamed tensions with unions before.

• Welcome To The Jungle: Clashes With Unions

  After taking office, Walker <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/11/us-wisconsin-budget-unions-idUSTRE71A7FP20110211" target="_hplink">announced a number of controversial proposals</a>, including eliminating collective bargaining rights for state employees and reducing public employee benefits. <a href="http://www.wuwm.com/news/wuwm_news.php?articleid=7768" target="_hplink">He said the reforms were necessary </a>to prevent thousands of layoffs. Facing anger from unions, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/11/scott-walker-unions-wisconsin-national-guard_n_822225.html" target="_hplink">Walker threatened</a> to mobilize the state's National Guard in response to any disruptions. The announcement <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/wisconsin-governor-scott-walker-backlash-public-workers_n_823901.html" target="_hplink">was met with backlash</a> across the state.

• Hush: Wisconsin Bans Collective Bargaining

  The fight over Walker's proposed budget was contentious, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/20/wisconsin-democratic-senators-illinois_n_825748.html" target="_hplink">with Wisconsin Democratic state senators crossing state lines </a>to Rockford, Ill. in an attempt to stall the vote. In March 2011, Walker signed the budget, significantly <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2011-03-12-wisconsin-law-analysis_N.htm" target="_hplink">curtailing collective bargaining rights</a> for union-affiliated public employees. Thousands of protesters <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/wisconsin-budget-protests_n_824213.html" target="_hplink">gathered in Madison</a>, and labor leaders and Democrats <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/11/scott-walker-signs-wiscon_n_834508.html" target="_hplink">vowed to fight back</a>.

• We're Not Gonna Take It: Foes Organize

  In the months following his signing of the bill, Walker's opponents organized, announcing their intention to recall the governor and his supporters. They <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/05/wisconsin-protesters-walkerville-tent-capitol-scott-walker-budget_n_871523.html" target="_hplink">erected a tent city</a> and believed they'd <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/07/scott-walker-wisconsin-election-supreme-court_n_846042.html" target="_hplink">won a surprise victory over</a> a conservative state supreme court judge, before amended voting totals from one county reversed the victory. Walker <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/16/scott-walker-mistakes-policies_n_900820.html" target="_hplink">continued to defend his policy </a>but said he had made mistakes in the political execution.

• Fake Empire: State Senators Face Recall

  Wisconsin Democrats scored a victory in their attempt to unseat Republican state legislators when they defeated six "fake" Democrats <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/scott-walker-recall-_n_898116.html" target="_hplink">running in the party's primaries</a>. Four of the six Republicans targeted for recall <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/12/scott-walker-wisconsin-recall-election_n_925331.html" target="_hplink">held onto their seats</a> in the general election.

• Let's Get It Started: Recall Effort Makes Ballot

  Petitions to recall Walker and his lieutenant governor <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/27/scott-walker-recall-signatures-wisconsin-governor_n_1304091.html" target="_hplink">gathered nearly a million signatures</a> each, far exceeding the 500,000 needed. Election officials <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/29/scott-walker-recall-wisconsin-election-signatures_n_1389229.html" target="_hplink">ordered a recall election</a>.

• Us Against The World: The Fight Moves Forward

  Democratic candidates faced tough odds from the start. In an April 2012 report, HuffPost's Amanda Terkel <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/04/scott-walker-recall_n_1401143.html" target="_hplink">noted</a> that only two sitting governors had been recalled in U.S. history. Four Democratic candidates competed in the May primary, headed by former Dane County executive Kathleen Falk and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

• Better Man: Tom Barrett Wins Primary

  After a tough primary, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/08/tom-barrett-wisconsin-recall-primary-scott-walker_n_1501568.html" target="_hplink">Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett</a> bested three other Democratic candidates in an early May primary. Barrett's victory set up a rematch with Gov. Walker, whom he lost to by about five percentage points in the 2010 race.

• Don't Stand So Close To Me: Walker, Barrett Neck And Neck

  Less than 48 hours before the recall, Public Policy Polling (PPP) released a final poll, showing <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/03/wisconsin-polls-scott-walker-recall-tom-barrett_n_1566788.html?ref=politics" target="_hplink">Walker with a narrow lead</a> over his Democratic challenger, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. <a href="http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2012/06/walker-leads-by-3-points.html" target="_hplink">PPP</a>, a firm affiliated with the Democratic Party, compiled a final poll showing Walker at 50 percent support, three percentage points ahead of Barrett's 47 percent.

• The Man Who Can't Be Moved: He Survives

  After a whirlwind day of voting that featured <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/05/wisconsin-recall-overwhelming-turnout_n_1572386.html" target="_hplink">swarmed polling places</a> around the state, media outlets <a href="https://twitter.com/mpoindc/status/210186998009434112" target="_hplink">called the race for Walker</a> less than an hour after polls closed. Full election results <a href="http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/2012/wisconsin-recall-results" target="_hplink">here</a>.

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