Wisconsin school board elections, 2017

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Elections

A total of 50 Wisconsin school districts among America's largest school districts by enrollment held elections in 2017 for 126 seats. Primary elections were scheduled on February 21, 2017. General elections were scheduled on April 4, 2017.

Here are several quick facts about Wisconsin's school board elections in 2017:

  • The largest Wisconsin school district by enrollment with an election in 2017 was Milwaukee Public Schools with 77,316 K-12 students in the 2014-2015 school year.
  • The smallest Wisconsin school district within Ballotpedia's coverage with an election in 2017 was Oregon School District with 3,828 K-12 students in the 2014-2015 school year.

The districts listed below served 455,983 K-12 students during the 2014-2015 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.[1] Click on the district names for more information on each one and its school board elections.

2017 Wisconsin School Board Elections
District Primary Election General Election Runoff Election Regular term length Seats up for election Total board seats 2014-15 enrollment
Appleton Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 16,373
Beloit School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 7,133
Chippewa Falls Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,515
D.C. Everest Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,857
De Pere School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,190
Eau Claire Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 11,151
Elmbrook School District 2/21/2017 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 6,988
Fond du Lac School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 7,444
Franklin Public School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,396
Germantown School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 3,931
Green Bay Area Public School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 21,013
Hamilton School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,720
Holmen School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 3,959
Howard-Suamico School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,996
Hudson School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,492
Janesville School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 10,408
Kaukauna Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 3,893
Kenosha Unified School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 22,439
Kettle Moraine School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,057
Kimberly Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,969
La Crosse School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 6,814
Madison Metropolitan School District 2/21/2017 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 27,274
Manitowoc School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,179
Marshfield School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,051
McFarland School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 5 4,304
Menomonee Falls School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,098
Middleton-Cross Plains School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 6,754
Milwaukee Public Schools N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 4 4 9 77,316
Mukwonago School District 2/21/2017 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 4,673
Muskego-Norway School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,840
Neenah Joint School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 6,155
New Berlin School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,528
Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 6,577
Oconomowoc Area School District 2/21/2017 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,264
Oregon School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 3,828
Oshkosh Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 9,872
Racine Unified School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 19,819
Sheboygan Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 4 9 10,248
Stevens Point Area Public School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 4 9 7,262
Sun Prairie Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 7,837
Superior School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,680
Verona Area School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 5,411
Watertown Unified School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 3,876
Waunakee Community School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 4,031
Wausau School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 8,628
Waukesha School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 13,494
Wauwatosa School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 4 7 7,227
West Allis-West Milwaukee School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 9 9,890
West Bend School District 2/21/2017 4/4/2017 N/A 3 3 7 6,916
Wisconsin Rapids School District N/A 4/4/2017 N/A 3 2 7 5,213

Issues

Referenda on the ballot

Twenty-three school districts in Wisconsin asked citizens to vote on referenda totaling $708 million in April 2017. In 2016, citizens approved referenda totaling $1.35 billion, which beat the formerly highest amount of $1.04 billion that was approved in 1996, according to a report released by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance.[2] Six of the state's 50 largest school districts were among those who put referenda on the ballot on April 4, 2017.

Green Bay Area Public School District

See also: Green Bay Area Public School District elections (2017)
Green Bay Area Public School District logo.jpg

After creating the district's 10-year facilities master plan in 2016, the Green Bay school board decided to include two referendum questions on the ballot for the April 2017 election. The first question asked the voters to allow the district to exceed its $16.5 million revenue limit for the next 10 years. The last time the district asked for a revenue increase was in 2011. The second question on the ballot asked for approval of $68 million in construction projects to reduce overcrowding in the east side of the district. The money would build a new elementary school, make additions to seven other elementary schools, update security at some schools, and make renovations at four other schools.[3][4] Both referendums were passed by voters with over 60 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results.[5]

The district made their case for the referendum through their website and a fact sheet compiled by the district with the details of the referendum questions. The fact sheet stated that the passage of the referendum would not increase the tax rate for the residents of Green Bay. Richard Parins of the Brown County Tax Association addressed the district's claim.

Taxes would go down if this referendum didn’t go through, because all they’re doing is they’ve paid off a bunch of debt and they’re re-loading it. Then they don’t have to fight to get it back up again and they say, ‘well, we’re keeping taxes at about the same level!’ yeah, that’s because we’ve been paying off debt for a long time.[6]
—Richard Parins, (2017)[7]

The two referendum questions were on the ballot in the general election held on April 4, 2017. The district stated in their fact sheet that without the money this referendum would give the schools, the district would need to cut $18 million dollars and, thereby, reduce course offerings, increase class size, and reduce the staff by 150 people.[8]

Howard Suamico School District

See also: Howard-Suamico School District elections (2017)
Howard-Suamico School District seal.jpeg

In addition to choosing two school board members on April 4, 2017, citizens of the Howard-Suamico School District voted on a referendum that asked to increase the district's revenue limit. The referendum failed with 70.64 percent of voters casting ballots against it, according to unofficial results.[5]

After surveying the community through an online survey at the end of 2016, the board voted unanimously on January 9, 2016, to include a referendum question seeking a $4 million increase in its revenue limits on the April 2017 ballot. Over 900 people participated in the survey created by the board. The results showed that 84 percent supported the referendum for general improvements in the district. More specifically, 67 percent of respondents supported the money going to academic programs, while 61 percent of respondents supported the money being used to increase teacher compensation.[9]

The referendum question was worded to allow a $4 million increase in the revenue limits each year, indefinitely. The referendum would increase a taxpayer's 2018 bill by $1.19 for every $1,000 of equalized home value. The tax rate would decrease after the initial first-year bump. The average home value in Howard was $208,989 2017, making the annual impact $248.79 for an average homeowner. Likewise, the average home value in Suamico was $239,359 in 2017, making the annual impact $284.84 for an average homeowner.[10]

The school board released a fact sheet laying out how it would spend the money brought in by the approved referendum. Student services, employee compensation, and facilities maintenance were the three spending priorities for the money as identified by the board.[9]

School District of Holmen

See also: School District of Holmen elections (2017)
Holmen School District seal.jpg

Board of education members were not the only School District of Holmen items on the ballot on April 4, 2017. Citizens of the school district also voted on three referenda questions. The three questions asked for a total of $4,048,203. All three referenda appeared on the ballot as separate questions, which allowed district citizens to vote on each individually. Two of the questions were approved by voters.[11][5]

The largest referendum asked for $2,848,203 for safety and security capital improvements, and it was approved with 64.04 percent of voters in favor, according to unofficial results. The improvements included surveillance systems, digitally controlled door access, and reconstruction on main entryways.[11][5]

The second-largest referendum asked for $900,000 for site improvements at Holmen High School. It was approved with 54.3 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results. Those improvements included expanding the student and guest parking lots, constructing access drives to help alleviate traffic, and developing two athletic fields.[11][5]

The smallest referendum asked for $300,000 to help fund the installation of multi-purpose synthetic turf as well as the construction of additional seating at Empire Stadium. It failed with 51.54 percent of voters casting ballots against it, according to unofficial results.[11]

School District of Menomonee Falls

See also: Menomonee Falls School District elections (2017)
Menomonee Falls School District logo.png

A referendum question for $6.4 million in temporary operational funding appeared on the April 4, 2017, ballot in the Menomonee School District. The referendum was defeated—51.5 percent of voters were opposed and 48.5 percent were in favor.[12]

If the referendum had passed, the school district would have been able to exceed its revenue limit for three years beginning in 2017 and ending in 2020. The district's operational funding would have exceeded the revenue limit by $1.1 million in the 2017-2018 school year, $2.3 million during the 2018-2019 school year, and $3.0 million during the 2019-2020 school year.[13] The referendum language that appeared on the ballot could be found by clicking here.[14]

Verona Area School District

See also: Verona Area School District elections (2017)
Verona Area School District seal.jpg

Voters in the Verona Area school district passed three bonds in the April 2017 general election. The first bond asked voters to approve exceeding the revenue limit by $2,289,747 for the 2020-2021 school year and thereafter for new district facilities and grounds operational expenses. The second asked voters to approve $18,520,000 in order to construct a swimming pool and competition athletic fields. The third asked voters to approve $162,760,000 in order to construct a new high school and renovate other schools.[15][16]


West Allis-West Milwaukee School District

See also: West Allis-West Milwaukee School District elections (2017)
West Allis-West Milwaukee School District logo.jpg

In addition to choosing three school board members on April 4, 2017, citizens of the West Allis-West Milwaukee School District also voted on a $12.5 million referendum to be spread out in $2.5 million increments over school years 2017-2018 through 2021-2022. The referendum asked for the funding to cover rising costs of expenses, to retain staff, and to develop new programming, according to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.[17] Voters did not approve the referendum. A total of 55.68 percent of voters cast ballots against it, according to unofficial results.[5]

The decision to put the referendum on the 2017 ballot came after the district's leaders were informed in December 2015 that $14 million of district funds had been overspent. To replenish the funds, the district borrowed money and sold district buildings. West Allis-West Milwaukee Superintendent Marty Lexmond also said the district had tightened the budget.[18][19]

“But we’re still facing significant financial challenges,” Lexmond said. “We’ve gotten to the point where we’re going to have to start making cuts in the schools.”[18]

The school board voted unanimously on January 23, 2017, to put the referendum on the ballot. A district survey conducted in December 2016 that showed a majority of respondents were willing to pay up to $60 more annually in property taxes for the school district.[18]

School districts react to budget proposal

In February 2017, Gov. Scott Walker (R) promised to add $649 million to the state's education funding in his proposed 2017-2019 budget. The proposal included a $200 per-pupil increase for the 2017-2018 school year and a $204 per-pupil increase for the 2018-2019 school year.[20] This proposed increase in education funding came two years after Walker proposed a cut in education funding for his 2015-2017 budget.[21]

Oconomowoc Area School District

See also: Oconomowoc Area School District elections (2017)
Oconomowoc Area School District seal.jpg

Gov. Scott Walker (R) promised to add $649 million to the state's education funding in his proposed 2017-2019 budget. Under that proposal, the Oconomowoc Area School District was expected to see an increase in funding for the 2017-2018 school year. The district stood to receive an additional $750,000 per year in state aid and an increase in per-pupil funding.[22]

The proposal included a requirement that school employees would have to pay at least 12 percent of all costs and payments associated with health care plans. That requirement was set in place by Wisconsin's Act 10. In order to qualify for funding under the proposed budget, the district would have had to certify its compliance with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction prior to receiving any increased funding.[22]

“There are a lot of questions about the implications of the proposal and what this means. It is a significant change for employees with little notice,” said Beth Sheridan, the district's director of business services. She said that requirement would have shifted approximately $353,000 in health care premium costs from the district to the district's employees.[22]

When they reviewed Walker's proposed budget, members of the Joint Finance Committee of the Wisconsin State Legislature deleted the governor's recommendation to require school employees to pay 12 percent of health care plan payments. That requirement was not included in the final budget that was passed in September 2017.[23]

Wauwatosa School District

See also: Wauwatosa School District elections (2017)

The advocacy group Support Our Schools (SOS) Wauwatosa called on Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) to raise per-pupil funding in January 2017 in response to a surplus of state funds. The state's Legislative Fiscal Bureau released a memo saying that the state had nearly $715 million more than expected due to higher revenue projects and lower Medicaid spending.[24]

“Our kids can have big dreams about their future when they’re confident about the present,” said Stacy Racine Lynch, president of SOS Wauwatosa. “We encourage Governor Walker to seize this unique moment and raise the revenue cap and increase state funding by at least $300 a year per pupil. We want all children in Wauwatosa and Wisconsin to be able to imagine and prepare for success.”[24]

In February 2017, Walker promised to add $649 million to the state's education funding for the 2017-2019 budget. His proposal included a $200 per-pupil increase for the 2017-2018 school year and a $204 per-pupil increase for the 2018-2019 school year.[20]

"What Walker has put in the budget he should be lauded for," said John Mack, director of business services for the Wauwatosa School District. "The $200-plus (per pupil) would be outstanding for Wauwatosa School District."[25]

Though he said he was appreciative of the governor's proposed budget, Mack also said it was not enough to cover the school district's facility costs from aging buildings and maintenance. "It's not a long-term solution. It doesn't give us enough operating revenue to make the necessary changes in the classroom," Mack said. "It's enough to give us operational dollars in the short term."[25]

Wauwatosa Alderman Dennis McBride said that efforts by groups like SOS Wauwatosa helped the governor decide to add more funding for education. "Governor Walker responded to the groundswell of support for public education," McBride said. "If we had not started advocating in 2015, this budget would not have been favorable for public schools."[25]

In September 2017, the Wisconsin State Legislature passed a budget that included an increase of $639 million for public education funding.[26]

Issues across the districts

Madison Metropolitan School District

See also: Madison Metropolitan School District elections (2017)
Madison Metropolitican School District seal.png
Pathways program introduced

The Madison Metropolitan district implemented an educational restructuring in the form of a Pathways program beginning in the 2017-2018 school year. This program offers "personalized pathways" to students, meaning that between 120 and 150 freshmen at each of the district's high schools were given the option to participate in a health services pathway in the fall of 2017. The district planned to make the program mandatory for all its high schools students by the 2022-2023 school year, at which point there would be four to six pathways from which they could choose.

The program would have five components, according to the Wisconsin State Journal:

  • Small learning clusters that create family-like structures;
  • Rigorous and linked courses;
  • Academic and career planning;
  • Support tailored to a student’s needs;
  • Real-world learning opportunities through community partnerships.[27][6]

Superintendent Jennifer Cheatham said she wanted to create an environment that helps each student to develop a post-high school plan. “This is new, and it’s incredibly important if every child is to be successful,” Cheatham said. “We want students to be in the driver’s seat, to set their own goals for after high school and to do it in a systematic way.” The superintendent said that the program also addressed issues that were brought up at community forums and in student focus groups, such as achievement gaps and high school drop-outs. “Students and families said they could not see the relevancy of the coursework,” she said. “Students were going from one class to the next in a disconnected way. And because of this lack of relevancy, they were not making it to the finish line.”[27]

District parents voiced concern about the program, saying it could diminish the wide range of elective options available to students. “I think if you have a 91 percent graduation rate (like at West), then there’s probably a better way to help the other 9 percent than reorganizing the entire high school,” Michelle Mouton, a district parent, said. Mouton was also concerned that “pushing pathways so hard and so rapidly” put the district in danger of losing skilled teachers, limited the educational scope of the curriculum offered, and risked losing parent support.[27]

Although the district planned to fully-implement the program by 2022, the administration and Board of Education evaluated whether or not it has been successful enough to move forward with phasing it in.[27]

Muskego-Norway School District

See also: Muskego-Norway School District elections (2017)
Muskego-Norway Schools logo.png
School district, city officials decide on water provision

A meeting between city of Muskego and Muskego-Norway School District officials took place on March 14, 2017. The parties reached an agreement to bring city water service to a district middle school that opened in the fall of 2018. The estimate to hook the school up to city utilities is roughly $900,000.[28]

City officials originally asked the district to install water mains in order to provide the school with municipal water service. The estimated cost to install these water mains was $1.2 million. The city, or its utilities, would have helped to pay for the installation. School district officials instead favored installing a well to provide the school with water, at a cost estimate of approximately $400,000. The compromise reached between city and district officials was one of four options proposed: allowing a closer hookup to city water for the district, cost sharing between the city and schools, allowing the school to use a well, and allowing the school to use a well temporarily and transferring the ownership of the well to the city after the school hooked up to city water services.[28]

School administrators seek flexibility for school start date

School administrators throughout the state spoke in support of a bill introduced in the Wisconsin State Legislature in February 2017 that would give districts more flexibility surrounding school start dates. AB 103 sought to repeal a state law enacted in 2000 that prohibits districts from starting school before September 1 unless a waiver is obtained from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction for "extraordinary reasons."[29][30]

AB 103 had 24 co-sponsors in the Assembly and 11 co-sponsors in the Senate.[31] It was referred to the Assembly's Education Committee on February 27, 2017. It did not move out of committee before the 2017-2018 school year started on September 5, 2017.[32] Similar bills were introduced in past sessions but were never passed.[33]

When it was first enacted, the September 1 mandate was supported by the tourism industry. School administrators, however, said school calendars should be controlled by the districts in order to better plan for inclement weather days and to create optimal schedules for their students. They said starting in August would give high school students more class time before taking advanced placement tests in May and that it would help maximize learning for other students as well. Administrators said students were more ready to learn in August than they were in the spring, when teachers started seeing declining results. They also said starting earlier would help decrease backsliding during the summer as breaks could be shorter and more frequent.[29][30][34]

As school administrators came out in support of the bill, officials with the Wisconsin Hotel & Lodging Association, the Tourism Federation of Wisconsin, and other city and county visitor centers voiced their opposition to the repeal of the September 1 mandate and said they would be negatively affected by the change. They said they relied on student workers to close out the season through Labor Day and that August was a better time for families to vacation compared to June due to the weather. In 2015, the month of August brought in $130 million more in tourism revenue than the month of June, according to the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.[29][30][34]

On May 2, 2017, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) called AB 103 a moot point and said the September 1 mandate would not be repealed. He said the state could lose sales tax revenue—and thus funds for education—if the tourism industry was affected by a school start change. “While I empathize with those who raise the issue, the practical reality is that it isn’t going to pass the Legislature," said Walker.[35]

Academic performance

See also: Public education in Wisconsin

BP-Initials-UPDATED.png The sections below do not contain the most recently published data on this subject. If you would like to help our coverage grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia.


Education terms
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For more information on education policy terms, see this article.

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NAEP scores

See also: NAEP scores by state

The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The table below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Wisconsin had a higher percentage of students score at or above proficient in all categories than students in Illinois and Michigan. However, students in Wisconsin fell below those in Minnesota.[36]

Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013
Math - Grade 4 Math - Grade 8 Reading - Grade 4 Reading - Grade 8
Wisconsin 47% 40% 35% 36%
Illinois 39% 36% 34% 36%
Michigan 37% 30% 31% 33%
Minnesota 59% 47% 41% 41%
United States 41% 34% 34% 34%
Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables"

Graduation, ACT and SAT scores

See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Wisconsin and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[36][37][38]

In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.[39]

Wisconsin schools reported a graduation rate of 88 percent during the 2012-2013 school year, highest among neighboring states.

In Wisconsin, more students took the ACT than the SAT in 2013, earning an average ACT score of 22.1.

Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013
State Graduation rate, 2013 Average ACT composite, 2013 Average SAT composite, 2013
Percent Quintile ranking** Score Participation rate Score Participation rate
Wisconsin 88% First 22.1 71% 1771 4%
Illinois 83.2% Third 20.6 100% 1807 5%
Michigan 77% Fourth 19.9 100% 1782 4%
Minnesota 79.8% Fourth 23 74% 1780 6%
United States 81.4% 20.9 54% 1498 50%
**Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally.
Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express"
ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores"
The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013"

Dropout rate

See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Wisconsin was lower than the national average at 2 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 1.9 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[40]

State profile

State profile

Demographic data for Wisconsin
 WisconsinU.S.
Total population:5,767,891316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):54,1583,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:86.5%73.6%
Black/African American:6.3%12.6%
Asian:2.5%5.1%
Native American:0.9%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
Two or more:2.1%3%
Hispanic/Latino:6.3%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:91%86.7%
College graduation rate:27.8%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$53,357$53,889
Persons below poverty level:15%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Wisconsin.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Wisconsin

Wisconsin voted for the Democratic candidate in five out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, 23 are located in Wisconsin, accounting for 11.17 percent of the total pivot counties.[41]

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Wisconsin had 21 Retained Pivot Counties and two Boomerang Pivot Counties, accounting for 11.60 and 8.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Wisconsin coverage on Ballotpedia

See also

Wisconsin School Boards News and Analysis
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Footnotes

  1. National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 22, 2016
  2. Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, "Wisconsin school districts' debt soars after $1.35 billion in new borrowing," March 6, 2017
  3. WBAY, "Two Green Bay school referendums decided for April ballot," January 23, 2017
  4. Green Bay Area Public Schools, "Referendum," accessed February 24, 2017
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Brown County Clerk, "Summary Reports Unofficial," accessed April 4, 2017 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "results" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "results" defined multiple times with different content
  6. 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  7. WBAY, "Two Green Bay school referendums decided for April ballot," January 23, 2017
  8. Green Bay Area Public Schools, "Referendum," accessed February 24, 2017
  9. 9.0 9.1 Green Bay Gazette, "Howard-Suamico plans schools referendum in April," January 10, 2017
  10. Howard-Suamico School District, "Information about the April 4, 2017 Referendum," accessed January 27, 2017
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, "Custom Referenda Reports," accessed January 30, 2017
  12. Northwest Now, "Menomonee Falls School District operating referendum defeated," April 4, 2017
  13. School District of Menomonee Falls, "WHAT IS ON THE BALLOT ON APRIL 4, 2017?" accessed March 24, 2017
  14. Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, "Custom Referenda Reports," accessed March 24, 2017
  15. Verona Area School District, "What is on the ballot?" accessed February 23, 2017
  16. Dane County, "2017 Spring Election Unofficial Canvass," accessed April 5, 2017
  17. Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, "Custom Referenda Reports," accessed February 16, 2017
  18. 18.0 18.1 18.2 Greenfield West Allis Now, "WAWM to place $2.5 million school referendum on April ballot," January 24, 2017
  19. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "After over spending by $14 million, West Allis sells school district offices," January 11, 2017
  20. 20.0 20.1 Leader-Telegram, "Walker vows big K-12 funding boost," February 5, 2017
  21. NBC 15, "Superintendents send letter to lawmakers over budget concerns," February 18, 2015
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 Lake Country Now, "Oconomowoc Area School District could see $750,000 additional state aid in 2017-18," February 27, 2017
  23. Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, "Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Summary of 2017 Act 59 Final 2017-19 Biennial Budget with Vetoes," accessed January 23, 2018
  24. 24.0 24.1 WisBusiness.com, "Wisconsin Advocates: Restore funding to K-12 public schools," January 21, 2017
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 Wauwatosa Now, "State budget to provide some relief for Wauwatosa Schools," February 21, 2017
  26. Wisconsin State Journal, "A quick primer on what's in the 2017-19 Wisconsin state budget," September 19, 2017
  27. 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 Wisconsin State Journal, "With 'pathways' initiative, Madison looks to fundamentally change its high school experience," November 27, 2016
  28. 28.0 28.1 Muskego New Berlin Now, "Options emerge in water fight in Muskego over school," March 12, 2017
  29. 29.0 29.1 29.2 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Proposed bill would repeal Sept. 1 school start law," February 3, 2017
  30. 30.0 30.1 30.2 La Crosse Tribune, "Educators, parents would relish chance to start early," February 13, 2017
  31. WXPR, "Assembly Bill Would Change Sept. 1 School Start Date," February 28, 2017
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  33. WXOW.com, "Should local districts decide school start dates?" February 21, 2017
  34. 34.0 34.1 WSAW, "Wausau Schools hope to take control of annual start date," February 13, 2017
  35. La Crosse Tribune, "Gov. Scott Walker: School won't start before Sept. 1," May 3, 2017
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  39. StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
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  41. The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.