Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker will be the next Wisconsin Governor.
With 52 percent of the vote, Walker defeated Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett Tuesday in the General Election. The Barrett camp conceded the race shortly after 10:30 p.m.
Appearing in front of a banner proclaiming Wisconsin is "open for business," Walker repeated that line many times during his acceptance speech and reinforcing his campaign promise to create 250,000 jobs before the end of his term.
He also maintained another campaign claim, pledging to call an emergency session of the legislature on his first day in office.
Walker won traditional GOP strongholds in Waukesha County and the Fox Valley, but fared poorly in Democratic areas like Milwaukee and Madison. In all, he took 59 of Wisconsin's 72 counties according to a CNN.com election map.
With Walker headed to the Capitol, County Board Chairman Lee Holloway will temporarily take over county executive duties once Walker takes office. Holloway will have 30 days to name an interim County Executive, who will serve in the position until a special election can be held.
Barrett, meanwhile, will remain Milwaukee's mayor until at least 2012. In his concession speech, he pledged to work together with Walker to make Milwaukee stronger.
Walker echoed that sentiment.
"We made a pledge to work together because we care deeply for the state," Walker said. "We love this state and we're going to work together to get this state working again."
Walker will become the first governor from Milwaukee County since Julius Heil, who took office in 1939.
U.S. Senate: Republican challenger Ron Johnson claimed the seat held for 18 years by Democrat Russ Feingold. Johnson received 52 percent of the vote to Feingold's 47.
In his concession speech, Feingold alluded to the 2012 election, suggesting he might consider seeking office again, perhaps if Senior Senator Herb Kohl opts not to run for re-election.
U.S. House: Of the 55 seats gained Tuesday by Republicans, two came in Wisconsin. Sean Duffy, a Wausau Republican, defeated Julie Lassa, 52-44. Duffy replaces Dave Obey, who held the seat since 1969. In Northeast Wisconsin, GOP challenger Reid Ribble defeated incumbent Democrat Steve Kagen, giving Republicans the majority among Wisconsin's Congressional delegation for the first time since 1996.
Attorney General: Incumbent J.B. Van Hollen was re-elected to a second term, defeating Democratic challenger Scott Hassert by a wide margin. Van Hollen was the only GOP candidate to win a state office in the 2006 election.
Milwaukee County Sheriff: David Clarke easily defeated challenger Steven Duckhorn, a former Milwaukee police officer.
He might not be in that position very long, however. Clarke could very well be the leading candidate to replace Walker as County Executive, a notion Clarke acknowledged after his race became official.
In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, Clarke said that there are "some things in my favor" for a possible run.
Clarke was first elected Sheriff in 2002, after being appointed earlier that year by then-Gov. Scott McCallum.
