The Democratic Party dominated politics until the late 1850s; then the newly founded Republican Party held sway for almost 100 years. More recently, the parties remain relatively even in power at both the national and state levels.
Jacksonian democracy was strong in Wisconsin in the early days, and until 1856 all territorial and state governors were Democrats, except for one Whig. In 1854, however, a coalition of Whigs, antislavery Democrats, and Free Soilers formed a Republican Party in the state—a key event in the establishment of the national Republican Party. Republicans quickly gained control of most elective offices; from 1856 to 1959 there were only three Democratic governors. The Republican Party was dominated in the late 19th century by conservatives, who were sympathetic to the railroads and the lumbering industry but whose stands on pensions and jobs for Union veterans and ability to win federal funds for the state attracted support from farmers and small business. Then, in the 1890s, Progressives within the party, led by Robert La Follette, began a successful battle for control that culminated in La Follette's election as governor in 1900.
The La Follette brand of progressivism remained strong in the state, although not always under the umbrella of Republicanism. In 1924, La Follette ran for president on the Progressive ticket; 10 years later, his sons, Robert and Philip, also broke away from the GOP, to head a Progressive Party slate. However, their newly organized national third party faded and folded when Philip La Follette failed to be reelected governor, and World War II made isolationism unpopular. The Progressives rejoined the GOP in 1946.
Socialist parties have won some success in Wisconsin's political history. Socialists worked with progressive Republicans at the state level to pass important legislation in the early 20th century. In 1910, the Socialists scored two major political victories in Wisconsin: Emil Seidel was elected mayor of Milwaukee, becoming the first Socialist mayor of a major US city, and Victor Berger became the first Socialist ever elected to Congress. The state does not require voters to register. There were 3,045,730 voters registered in the state in 2002, however.
Wisconsin's senators, both Democrats, are Herb Kohl, reelected in 2000 and Russell Feingold, reelected in 1998. Wisconsin's US House delegation consists of four Republicans and four Democrats following 2002 elections. In mid-2003, there were 18 Republicans and 15 Democrats in the state senate, and 41 Democrats and 58 Republicans in the state assembly. Wisconsin's former Republican governor, Tommy Thompson, who was reelected to an unprecedented fourth four-year term in 1998, was named President George W. Bush's Secretary of Health and Human Services in 2001.
In the 2000 presidential election, Democrat Al Gore beat Republican George W. Bush by a mere 5,396 votes in Wisconsin; Green Party candidate Ralph Nader received 4% of the vote. The state had 11 electoral votes in the 2000 presidential election.