37% of independents want Evers to run again. Is that bad? Depends who you ask

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- In the shadow of the state Capitol Wednesday evening, June 25, people relaxed to the sounds of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra during the first Concerts on the Square event this summer.

Unlike this scene, the world of Wisconsin campaigns is never calm, so plenty of people paid attention to a new Marquette Law School Poll Wednesday showing 55% of registered voters believe Democratic Gov. Tony Evers should not seek a third term.

Within those results, 50% of independent voters opposed the idea of Evers running again compared to 37% who supported it.

Around the Capitol, it was easy to find voters in dark-blue Madison who said they wanted the governor to run again in 2026.

"I think he's had a great past record," Deb Davis of Madison said. "I think he's a wonderful representative for Wisconsin, and I'd love to see him run again."

More than 14 years after the Act 10 protests brought tens of thousands of people to the Capitol grounds, liberal voters on Wednesday still were quick to contrast Evers to his Republican predecessor, Scott Walker, who served from 2011 to 2019.

"I'd say think about the values of Wisconsin as a progressive leader in the country," said David Lockwood, a Madison resident who was raised in West Allis. "And the history of Wisconsin and ask whether the path Scott Walker set us on was right."

Republicans, however, view Wednesday's poll results as a sign of Evers being vulnerable. Milwaukee County GOP Chairman Hilario Deleon said he was planning to start canvassing for 2026 at more summer gatherings.

"We'll be able to really have those conversations and meet those independents head on and understand what they're thinking," Deleon said. "But I think some people are really frustrated at the size of the state government, the amount of money going into these different projects, and they're not seeing a return on their investment."

The Evers campaign responded to the poll by pointing back to Walker. Spokesperson Sam Roecker reference a January 2016 poll asking voters the same question about Walker.

In that poll, 36% of independent voters and 36% of voters overall backed the idea of Walker running again. 59% of independent voters said they did not want Walker to seek a third term.

Walker did run again, and he lost to Evers in November 2018.

"Not only is the governor in a significantly stronger position than Scott Walker was at this point in 2016," Roecker said in an email. "Independent voters continue to overwhelmingly support access to reproductive care, expanding access to healthcare, and funding for Wisconsin's public schools – all of which Governor Evers has championed."

Among their own bases, 69% of Republicans said in 2016 they wanted Walker to run again while 83% of Democrats supported an Evers re-election bid in Wednesday's poll.

One big difference was Walker had dropped out of the GOP presidential race just four months earlier after having been considered a leading Republican presidential candidate for much of 2015.

If he runs again and is re-elected, Evers would be 75 years old at the outside of his third term. Democrats have publicly maintained it's strictly Evers' decision to make, and they'll back his choice.

State Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison) said she fully supported Evers' position of not making a decision until after there's a new state budget this summer. Roys added she believed any Democratic candidate will from backlash against President Donald Trump.

"I think that voters in 2026 are gonna be really energized," Roys said. "When they see all the recklessness that the Republican regime in Washington is doing."

The state budget ends June 30, and although it's almost certain the GOP-controlled Legislature won't pass a new budget by then, GOP lawmakers at the Capitol Wednesday said they were making progress.

Evers and the governor's office have publicly said he won't sign a budget that fails to adequately fund childcare or make cuts to the University of Wisconsin System.