Alan J. Borsuk – Page 72 – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

The Likely and the Less Likely — Insights from the New Law School Poll

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:August 27, 2014
Post category:Political Processes & Rhetoric Public

The Registered and the Likely – maybe that could be the name of a political soap opera, although I doubt it would attract high ratings in the general public. But it would attract high ratings among those involved in election campaigns and those eager to understand those campaigns and politics overall.

New results from the Marquette Law School Poll, released Wednesday, put the Registered and the Likely in the spotlight. Among 815 registered voters across the state, Republican Gov. Scott Walker led Democratic challenger Mary Burke 47.5 percent to 44.1 percent in the race for governor. But among 609 participants in the poll who were labeled likely to vote in November, Burke led Walker, 48.6 percent to 46.5 percent.

So who’s ahead, Walker or Burke? The best answer is that it’s too close to say – by both measures, the race is within the margin of error of the poll.

So What Do You Think of Mary Burke?

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:July 23, 2014
Post category:Marquette Law School Political Processes & Rhetoric Public

On one level, the results released Wednesday of a fresh round of the Marquette Law School Poll did not contain much new. As Charles Franklin, professor of law and public and policy and director of the poll, said frequently during the “On the Issues with Mike Gousha” event at which results were presented, there was not much that was statistically different from the poll two months ago. The big headline – and it did, indeed, make big headlines – was that Republican Gov. Scott Walker and Democratic challenger Mary Burke are essentially tied. That was the central result of the May poll as well.

I would suggest two important points that the little-changed results suggest:

One: The May results caught many people by surprise. There seemed to be a perception that, while the race was close, Walker was leading. The Law School Poll is the most closely watched and respected measure of public opinion in Wisconsin, and for the results to show a tie changed the perception of the race. But, as Franklin said on Wednesday, there were suggestions that the results might be a one-time matter, an “outlier.” To have almost identical results two months later should put to rest that notion. The only reasonable conclusion is that this really is a race that is tied at this point. The intense level of campaigning, more than three months before the November election, shows that the candidates themselves are operating on the understanding that this is an intense, highly competitive election that either could win.

Forward Looking: New Marquette Lawyer Magazine Looks at Present and Future of Key Issues

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:May 23, 2014
Post category:Marquette Law School Public Speakers at Marquette

Marquette Lawyer - Summer 2014 Past, present, future—the Summer 2014 Marquette Lawyer focuses its attention on important and interesting facets of all three. But let us draw your attention to it foremost for its thoughts on the future, including:

The future of campaign spending. In the cover story, Heather K. Gerken, the J. Skelly Wright Professor at Yale Law School, examines the impact of the Citizens United decision of 2010, in The Real Problem with Citizens United: Campaign Finance, Dark Money, and Shadow Parties. Based on her Boden Lecture last fall at Marquette Law School, Gerken suggests that the case’s most important result could be a gulf between the elites involved in national political campaigns and the rank and file party members who have historically been the backbone of the parties. The article may be found by clicking here.