Madison, WI - The 2006 race for Wisconsin attorney general will be
very interesting. Three GOP candidates are looking at
a primary for the opportunity to run against
Democratic incumbent Peg Lautenschlager from Fond du
Lac.
The three Republicans looking at running for
attorney general include Waukesha County District
Attorney Paul Bucher, state Rep. Mark Gundrum
(R-Berlin), and U.S. Attorney John Van Hollen. All
three potential candidates are credible political
figures capable of mounting a serious challenge to
Lautenschlager's re-election.
But Attorney General Lautenschlager will have more
to worry about than which Republican candidate she
will face in 2006. She must also deal with ongoing
threats from some in her own party. Lautenschlager has
openly fought with Governor Jim Doyle over
environmental policy, the open records law and Doyle's
demand for state budget cuts that Lautenschlager says
make it difficult for her department to do its job.
John Nichols, a columnist for The Capital Times,
highlighted Lautenschlager's problem with some in her
own party:
"Lautenschlager took hits in 2004 for challenging
the Doyle administration's approach. And she will take
more hits in 2005. Doyle's allies and others in the
Democratic establishment have been moving behind the
scenes to displace her as the party's 2006 nominee for
attorney general - either by pressuring her to step
aside or by backing a Democratic primary challenger.
But the attorney general says she intends to seek a
second term."
In spite of her problems with some Democrats,
Republicans shouldn't assume Lautenschlager will be
easy to beat. She knows how to run and win.
Lautenschlager defeated a long-time Republican
incumbent in 1988 when she was elected to the state
Assembly in a GOP district. She also ran a credible
and relatively close race in her challenge to veteran
U.S. Rep. Tom Petri (R-WI) in 1992.
This could be the most interesting race in 2006.
Published: 2/3/2005
