Wisconsin Dems face off for chance to take on Gov. Walker in recall

May 4: Candidates wait before the start of a live debate between Democratic candidates for Wisconsin governor, from left Tom Barrett, Kathleen Falk, Doug La Follette and Kathleen Vinehout. at the Wisconsin Public Television studio in Madison, Wisconsin. (AP2012)

MADISON, Wis. – Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett hopes for a chance at a rematch against Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker as Democrats vote Tuesday on who will take on the first-term governor in a historic recall election next month.

Barrett was one of four Democrats on Tuesday's primary ballot looking to challenge Walker in the June 5 general election that has become a nationally watched battle over union rights.

Since his successful push to effectively end collective bargaining rights for most state workers, Walker has emerged as a national conservative hero, shattering fundraising records in Wisconsin by collecting $25 million, mostly from out-of-state donors. Walker has embodied the Republican rise to power in 2010 and hopes to avoid becoming just the third governor to be recalled in U.S. history.

Polls heading into the primary have consistently shown Barrett ahead of the other Democrats, including one last week that showed him 17 points up over nearest rival Kathleen Falk. Barrett's emergence as the front-runner was aided by his strong name recognition across the state, having just run against Walker for governor in 2010. Walker beat Barrett by about 125,000 votes, or roughly 5 percentage points.

Other Democrats on the ballot are Secretary of State Doug La Follette and state Sen. Kathleen Vinehout. They ran low-profile campaigns that failed to gain traction with voters. Gladys Huber is a Republican running as a Democrat.

Walker faces token opposition in the GOP primary from Arthur Kohl-Riggs, a Walker opponent running as a Republican.

Falk snared key endorsements in the recall race from unions, including the AFL-CIO and the statewide teachers union. Falk promised to veto any budget that doesn't restore the collective bargaining rights Walker took away, while Barrett has refused to make such a promise.

Despite their differences, the Democratic primary was mostly devoid of internal attacks. The candidates instead stayed largely focused on Walker and the policies he enacted over 16 months in office.

While the union fight spurred the recall, the campaign has been much broader and focused largely on Wisconsin's economy. Though the state's unemployment rate is at its lowest level since 2008, Wisconsin lost more jobs than any other state between March 2011 and March 2012.

Since Walker took office, only 5,900 private sector jobs have been created.

Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and three Republican state senators also face recall elections. There is an election in a fourth Senate district where the Republican incumbent targeted for recall resigned rather than run to keep her seat.

Turnout in the primary was projected to be 30 percent and 35 percent of eligible voters, which would be the highest for a primary in a governor's race since 38.9 percent in 1952.