LIVE RESULTS: Trump-backed Tim Michels wins Wisconsin GOP gubernatorial primary

Wisconsin held key Senate and gubernatorial primaries on Tuesday. Polls in the state closed at 8 p.m. local time and 9 p.m. ET.

The races and the stakes: 

US Senate

Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes is set to take on Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, setting up one of November's marquee US Senate races.

Johnson, a former plastics executive and political ally of former President Donald Trump, has compiled a reliably conservative voting record during his Senate career.

Democrats, still smarting from Johnson's dual wins over former Sen. Russ Feingold in 2010 and 2016, have been angling to defeat him the lawmaker for years.

Barnes, a longtime frontrunner in the Democratic primary, basically wrapped up the nomination after his leading competitors ended their campaigns last month. The former candidates, which included state Treasurer Sarah Godlewski, Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson, and Milwaukee Bucks executive Alex Lasry, all endorsed Barnes after their respective exits from the contest.

Barnes was first elected to statewide office on a ticket with now-Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in 2018. He would be Wisconsin's first Black United States senator if he were to defeat Johnson in November.

US House

3rd District

Democratic Rep. Ron Kind, a moderate who has held the seat since 1997, is not running for reelection. The district is anchored by Eau Claire and La Crosse in the state's Driftless region.

Navy SEAL Derrick Van Orden — who narrowly lost to Kind in 2020 — is projected to be the GOP's pick.

Democrats have four candidates: La Crosse City Councilman Mark Neumann, state Sen. Brad Pfaff, retired CIA officer Deb McGrath, and businesswoman Rebecca Cooke.

Governor 

Incumbent Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is running for reelection to a second term in what is expected to be a competitive contest in one of the nation's most closely-divided states. He did not face a primary opponent.

In 2018, Evers narrowly defeated conservative star Scott Walker, a former 2016 Republican presidential candidate who was running for a third term as governor.

Construction executive Tim Michels, who secured Trump's coveted endorsement, is projected to challenge Evers this November. Michels beat a field that included former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, who former Vice President backed in the race.

Despite Kleefisch's early status as a frontrunner in the race and her ties to Walker, Trump threw his support behind Michels — who previously lost to Feingold in the 2004 Wisconsin Senate election.

Lieutenant Governor 

In Wisconsin, parties choose their respective nominees for lieutenant governor separately from the gubernatorial nominees, but the candidates run on a ticket together in the general election.

With Barnes in the Senate race, state Rep. Sara Rodriguez is now projected to become Evers' running mate.

State Sen. Roger Roth is projected to have emerged from a crowded primary field that featured fellow state Sen. Patrick Testin; Lancaster Mayor David Varnam; conservative activist David King; former state workforce development official Will Martin; Army veteran Cindy Werner; businessman Jonathan Wichmann; and insurance agent and entertainer Kyle Yudes.

Secretary of State

Longtime Democratic Secretary of State Doug La Follette bested his lone primary challenger, Dane County Democratic Chair Alexia Sabor.

State Rep. Amy Loudenbeck beat out former Menasha town supervisor Jay Schroede and  conservative activist Justin Schmidtk for the GOP nomination.

State Treasurer

With Godlewski having declined to run for reelection in favor of her now-suspended Senate campaign, the race is wide open.

The Democratic primary candidates include West Allis Alderman Angelito Tenorio, Fitchburg Mayor Aaron Richardson, and radiologist Gillian Battino.

Attorney John Leiber is expected to be the Republican nominee after besting Orlando Owens, a former Johnson aide.

State Legislature

Republican House Speaker Robin Vos is projected to have prevailed over a Trump-backed primary opponent, another loss for the former president after he made the rare decision to back a challenger to a state legislative leader.

Vos, who has repeatedly stymied Evers from enacting his agenda, drew Trump's ire for refusing to push for the state to illegally "decertify" its 2020 election results. Trump had endorsed Adam Steen to unseat Vos.

There is no evidence of Trump's debunked claims about widespread voter fraud. There is also no mechanism under the constitution for a state to decertify its election results after the Electoral College vote has been formally counted and a new president inaugurated.

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