Here & Now

Here & Now for October 30, 2026

Announcer:
The following program is a PBS Wisconsin original production. This program is part of our “Here & Now” 2026 election coverage.

Frederica Freyberg:
For the first time in franchise history, the Milwaukee Brewers unlock the World Series achievement, and the state turns its attention to the next big event: the midterm elections.
I’m Frederica Freyberg. Tonight on “Here & Now,” Charles Franklin on the last voter survey before the official poll on Tuesday. Zac Schultz reports on how both parties are turning out Hispanic voters. A look at what’s possible in the state Legislature and a veteran Brewers reporter on the historic win. It’s “Here & Now” for October 30.

Announcer:
Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:
We are just four days from the election, and while some of the most enthusiastic voters have already cast an absentee ballot, both parties are actively working to convince the rest of their voters to go to the polls on Tuesday. While national polling shows Republican voters are the most likely to stay home, the parties are also trying to convince the growing Hispanic population in Wisconsin to vote. “Here & Now” senior political reporter Zac Schultz was in Milwaukee and has this story.

Man:
So we’ll probably start at the tail end of 72nd or something like that.

Hilario Deleon:
And then we’ll work our way.

Man:
We’ll work our way down.

Zac Schultz:
Reaching voters in Wisconsin isn’t just about television commercials.

Hilario Deleon:
How are you doing, sir? Just out here canvassing for Lee Whiting, who’s running for state Assembly in this district.

Zac Schultz:
Often, it comes down to volunteers knocking doors…

[sound of knocking on several doors]

Hilario Deleon:
Hello.

Woman # 1:
Hi.

Hilario Deleon:
Out here canvassing for Lee Whiting.

Zac Schultz:
… talking with voters one at a time.

Hilario Deleon:
Not sure if there’s any issues that you’re concerned about currently within Wisconsin, but…

Zac Schultz:
For Republicans in Milwaukee County, finding a friendly door can be a challenge.

Zac Schultz:
Lee isn’t-

Woman # 2:
What party?

Zac Schultz:
He’s a Republican.

Woman # 2:
Oh, okay, then I forgive you.

Hilario Deleon:
My name’s Hilario…
I truly believe that Wisconsin’s a Republican state. It’s just we have a turnout problem on our side. They don’t realize that inflation has actually gone down now.

Man # 2:
Yeah, exactly.

Zac Schultz:
Hilario Deleon is chairman of the Republican Party of Milwaukee County. And while it would be a major upset for the Republican in this Assembly seat to win, every vote for him in this district likely comes with a vote for Tom Tiffany in his race for governor.

Hilario Deleon:
Milwaukee is the key to winning statewide elections, whether it’s the White House, presidential elections or statewide offices for governor.

Zac Schultz:
It’s a message Tiffany repeats at his pub talks across the state.

Tom Tiffany:
We have a 72-county strategy. We’re not ignoring Milwaukee County. We are not ignoring Dane County.

Zac Schultz:
Republican turnout will play a key role in whether Tiffany can overcome a bad national environment for Republicans.

Donald Trump:
The midterms are coming up, and I hope you people are really spiritized because…

Zac Schultz:
Midterm elections often see the party of the president perform poorly and with Donald Trump’s approval ratings at all-time lows…

Donald Trump:
Tom Tiffany is one of the best congressmen.

Zac Schultz:
… Tiffany has spent a good chunk of the election trying to distance himself from Trump.

Donald Trump:
Now he’s running for a thing called governor, and you have…

Zac Schultz:
Tiffany needs Trump supporters to show up on Election Day but he really doesn’t want to talk about Donald Trump.

Tom Tiffany:
It’s much like my opponent. You hear him talk – when he talks about Tom Tiffany – all he talks about is Tom Tiffany and Donald Trump. And he’s not talking about what do Wisconsinites want? So he can rail against Donald Trump. I’m fighting for Wisconsin, and that’s what I will do as governor.

David Crowley:
Because we cannot allow MAGA extremism to continue in the state of Wisconsin y’all.

Zac Schultz:
For Democrat David Crowley, he wants voters to connect Tiffany with Trump.

David Crowley:
You know, Congressman Tom Tiffany, he’s been the MAGA extremist and wants to run away from the fact that he has been lockstep with Trump for the past decade. He has been one of the most conservative members that we’ve had here in the state of Wisconsin, being a part of the Freedom Caucus, but also not fighting on behalf of Wisconsinites.

Zac Schultz:
Hilario Deleon runs into voters who aren’t happy with Trump.

Man # 3:
You got a maniac in the White House and you got everything else.

Zac Schultz:
But he says most Republicans don’t regret their vote in 2024.

Man # 4:
I already plan on voting for him.

Hilario Deleon:
Happy to hear that. My name is Hilario. I’m the chairman.
We do run into voters that are frustrated at what’s going on at those levels, but do they regret their vote? No, they don’t. They feel better off if things might be tough right now, but they’re willing to kind of just short-term pain for a long-term gain.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
There’s a lot of talk among family and friends and coworkers, people regretting voting for Trump.

Zac Schultz:
Christine Neumann Ortiz is the executive director of Voces de La Frontera Action, the political arm of a group dedicated to helping immigrants and working people.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
Our goal is to continuously increase the level of political participation by the Latino community and youth as well.

Woman speaker at GOP convention:
God bless the American people. God bless President Trump and God bless the United States of America.

Zac Schultz:
Two years ago, Milwaukee hosted the GOP convention.

Cindy Spray:
Immigration is a big problem in every community in the United States.

Zac Schultz:
Where thousands of delegates held up signs calling for “Mass Deportation Now.” That fall, Hispanic voters around the country shifted towards Republicans, fueling a GOP wave. Deleon says that wouldn’t surprise anyone who actually knows Hispanics.

Hilario Deleon:
Sometimes they’re the strongest supporters of it. They want it done because they’re like, we’re a nation of law and order. I’m Hispanic. I’ve had family in Wisconsin before it was a state on my mom’s side. I had family members I think were illegal on my dad’s side.

Zac Schultz:
After two years of ICE raids, tariffs and inflation, the question going into ’26 was whether the Hispanic shift was permanent or a mirage.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
The biggest shift was not the shift towards Trump as just the shift of stepping away from voting.

Zac Schultz:
Voces de La Frontera Action is located on Milwaukee’s south side, in the heart of the most Hispanic part of the city. There are nearly 500,000 Hispanics living in the state, with more than half in southeast Wisconsin.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
The Latino community has grown in every county in Wisconsin. So when you think about voting, Latinos obviously have a very large number in certain areas like Milwaukee and Dane, but they’re everywhere.

Vanessa:
Hi Priscilla. My name is Vanessa. I’m an organizer with Voces de La Frontera Action. Have you heard of Voces before?

Zac Schultz:
That’s why Voces has volunteers running a phone bank.

Woman on phone bank:
Hi. Is this Yvette? We were just wondering if you were going to turn out and vote on November 3rd? Yes. Awesome. And will you be supporting David Crowley? Absolutely. Love to hear that.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
A phone bank is important because we are able to reach a lot of people and obviously, we start with the people who are closest to us. And it’s a personal conversation. It’s not a mass-produced communication.

Zac Schultz:
Get out the vote campaigns are critical in these areas.

Cristabel Martinez:
Just traditionally speaking for Latinos, there is a lower voter turnout, and we actually have seen that here in the South Side.

Zac Schultz:
Cristabel Martinez is chair of the Latino Caucus for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. She says threats of ICE at the polls can have a chilling effect on voters.

Cristabel Martinez:
I definitely think it’s a legitimate concern. And again, I think making sure that folks come prepared, you know, with identification ID. I know for me, even like I’ve walked around with my passport, you know, even though I’m a U.S. citizen.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
We’re also telling people to vote early.

Zac Schultz:
Martinez says Latino voters are motivated to support David Crowley for governor.

Cristabel Martinez:
Despite everything that’s been happening, again, it’s a testament of how resilient our community is and how we are preparing, even in the face of adversity.

Zac Schultz:
Crowley already represents this area as Milwaukee County executive.

David Crowley:
This is about making sure that folks have a seat at the table, and we have been working with them, getting folks access to different, different types of services and programs as it relates to our entrepreneurs, our small businesses, helping out our children or those who have been affected by the immigration agenda of this federal administration.

Zac Schultz:
We asked Tom Tiffany what his message was for Hispanic voters.

Tom Tiffany:
Yeah, I don’t deliver a message to any particular group. I address all Wisconsinites, regardless of what your ethnicity is, regardless of what your color is. The plan that we have in place of lower taxes, greater affordability, making sure state government is accountable to you. We’re going to grow jobs. We’re going to make Wisconsin one of the best states in the country to be able to live, work and play. And I think that resonates with everyone.

Zac Schultz:
Deleon says this is actually the correct approach.

Hilario Deleon:
They identify themselves as a voter and then Hispanic second.

Zac Schultz:
Deleon says Hispanics’ biggest issues are the same as all voters.

Hilario Deleon:
Affordability is a concern. But, you know, another concern that is probably equally or almost beyond that is public safety. People are scared.

Zac Schultz:
Norman Ortiz agrees the issues intersect with all voters but says it’s okay to speak directly to Hispanics.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
Immigrants are definitely part of the working class. Latinos are part of the working class, disproportionately. So all of the same issues that affecting others on housing and, you know, the cost of education, the cost of health care, all of those things are, you know, affect them as well.

Zac Schultz:
And while Tiffany doesn’t have a specific outreach plan for Hispanics, the Republican Party of Wisconsin does. They opened this Hispanic Outreach Center in 2024 but wouldn’t allow us to interview the coordinator for this story. Christine Neumann Ortiz doubts the GOP speaks to the needs of Hispanics but says the outreach center speaks to the power of Hispanic voters.

Christine Neumann Ortiz:
I know they’ve been trying to make inroads into the Latino community for a while now and again, because we’re a swing state, because of the growth of the Latino community. And in particular, the young people. And so I think it’s a testament to the power that the Latino community has.

Zac Schultz:
Reporting from Milwaukee, I’m Zac Schultz for “Here & Now.”

Frederica Freyberg:
What will turnout look like in this election? According to the latest Marquette Law School poll, Democrats hold the advantage in likelihood of voting and the enthusiasm to vote. For more on results from his final survey before November 3rd, we’re joined by poll director Charles Franklin. And Charles, thanks for being here.

Charles Franklin:
Good to be here.

Frederica Freyberg:
So I don’t want to overstate this turnout prospect, but your polling shows that 84% of Democrats say they are certain to vote or have already done so, and 77% of Republicans say the same. 64% of independents telling your pollsters that they are certain to vote. You also find that Democrats are more enthusiastic to vote than Republicans, and way more than independents. So a couple of questions around this. How important is that certainty or already voted spread for the candidates?

Charles Franklin:
It’s pretty important because it gives Democrats an advantage because of turnout, with the parties being about equally likely to support their party’s candidates. And it’s something that can fluctuate from one election to the next, and for that matter, could change between now and Election Day. Campaigns spend an enormous amount of time trying to motivate their voters and get them to the polls. But we have seen all year that Democrats have had an advantage on that certainty of turning out of by about 7%. And as you said, also on enthusiasm for voting, Democrats have about an eight-point advantage. Independents are the group that don’t turn out as much and are noticeably less enthusiastic. And that just reflects that independents are less engaged in politics and by definition, don’t have a partisan factor working for them.

Frederica Freyberg:
At the top of the ticket among this certain to vote cohort, Democrat David Crowley is the choice of 51%, and Republican Tom Tiffany, the choice of 44%, with 4% undecided. Now this result is outside the margin of error since September, Crowley has certainly pulled ahead.

Charles Franklin:
He’s pulled up a little bit. Compared to last month, Crowley’s picked up two points and Tiffany has fallen by two points. So the net is a shift of four points. But each candidate has only changed by a moderate amount. Now again, this is with likely voters. Those people that are certain they’re going to vote. If you look at registered voters, the whole set of registered voters, that slips to just a three-point Crowley advantage. And the interesting thing is that when you go to the people who are not certain, but those who [will] probably vote but not sure they’re going to vote, Tiffany actually leads by 12 with that group. And so you can see that if the electorate expanded, if Tiffany was able to bring some of those somewhat reluctant voters to the polls, then that would give us a result that’s narrower, closer to that 3% end of that range. Whereas if people do what they’ve told us they’re going to do in this poll, then we get up to the seven-point Crowley advantage.

Frederica Freyberg:
So things could break in the final days because do these numbers from your poll hold since you were in the field with it?

Charles Franklin:
Yeah, we’ve — you know, the election — we finished the field work about a week before, a little more than a week before the election. And so there’s certainly the chance for things to move. The debate was held on the night that we finished polling. So this doesn’t reflect any of the effect of the debate, nor does it reflect the last-minute push by the candidates. As we know, campaigns can affect the outcomes and polls, for that matter can be wrong. But this is our best estimate of where the public was at the time we did the poll. But people should take away that uncertainty – the range between a three point and a seven-point margin – is significant. And, you know, we’ve been surprised before. And so we’ll see if in the end this holds up. I think what does come away though is across a set of issues and the president’s standing, you see why a Democrat has an advantage this year.

Frederica Freyberg:
As to independents, you find that Crowley support increased from 44% in September to 56% in October among likely voters. While Tiffany’s support grew from 18% to 26%. Do independent voters in Wisconsin always trend Democratic?

Charles Franklin:
No, they don’t, and it’s a striking thing this year that independents here in Wisconsin are heavily leaning Democratic. But that shows up in state polls around the country. I think independents this year are incredibly negative about President Trump. Here in Wisconsin, they give him only a 19% job approval rating among independents. And they’re very negative about the economy. And we see that here and that’s a big barrier burden on Republicans.

Frederica Freyberg:
As to the state Legislature, you find the same split as you had in the governor’s race among likely voters. So is this poll predicting a trifecta for Democrats to win?

Charles Franklin:
I think it’s showing that the mood of the electorate is one that’s pretty negative towards the president and towards Republicans and that’s positive for Democrats. But they’re not — voters are not really distinguishing between their overall feel about politics and their specific legislative votes. What we did find that was a little surprising is a little — about 60% say they would like the same party to control both the governorship and the legislature. And that’s true of both Republicans and Democrats, though I imagine they differ in which party they want to control those.

Frederica Freyberg:
All right, Charles Franklin, thanks very much.

Charles Franklin:
Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:
As to the state House, Republicans have controlled both chambers of the Wisconsin Legislature for more than 15 years but the word on everyone’s minds for this election season is flip. The Assembly is safer for Republicans, but the state Senate is on a razor thin edge, with both sides only needing to win two of the four toss-up seats to take control of the chamber. “Here & Now” reporter Elijah Pines has the story.

Jenna Jacobson:
Thank you all for coming out today.

Elijah Pines:
In a small gathering room next door to a cafe, a few dozen Iowa County Democrats chat and get merch from candidates for the state Legislature. It’s not an unusual campaign stop for anyone running for the Assembly or Senate, but unlike most of the 100 plus elections happening all across the state, this Senate seat has millions of dollars behind it because this race, this candidate and this butter are key in determining which party controls the state Legislature and what laws Wisconsin will pass.

Jenna Jacobson:
My opening question to people is not “Will you vote for me?” It’s “What would you like to see the state working on?” because that is way more important to me than anything else.

Elijah Pines:
Jenna Jacobson is currently a Democrat in the Assembly. Her campaign to be the next senator for southwestern Wisconsin is expected to be one of the closest races in the state. With Republicans controlling both chambers of the Legislature, Wisconsin Dems are pulling out all the stops for races like this one. That includes more than a million dollars from the party and visits from national figures like U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin.

Tammy Baldwin:
You have particular power right here, because these could be the key seats that end up winning the state Assembly and winning the Senate.

Jenna Jacobson:
What it means to have a Democratic majority in the Assembly and the Senate, people are going to be more engaged and more excited about the possibilities to get meaningful change done in this state. And that’s just going to keep building.

Elijah Pines:
Senate District 17 is one of four battleground races identified by the Marquette Law School. The others include districts 5, 21 and 31. This is the first time odd numbered Senate districts are up for election since maps were redrawn in 2024. When the other half of the Senate was elected two years ago, Republicans were able to hold a slim 18 to 15 seat majority. It’s more likely to flip control than the lower house, but the Assembly districts inside Senate 17 have their own dramas. Jacobson is giving up her incumbency in Assembly District 50. Assembly 51 is thought of by political experts as a toss-up between longtime incumbent Republican Todd Novak and Democratic challenger Ben Gruber. UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden shares his analysis on the possibility of a flip of control.

Barry Burden:
Not an easy task and there are incumbents in the way who are popular, who have separate kind of brand loyalties or identities for voters. But if it follows what the presidential vote looked like and leans any more Democratic than it did in 2024, Democrats are maybe advantaged.

Elijah Pines:
Even with the win on Democrats’ backs, Republicans are putting up a fight. Jacobson is going against incumbent Republican Senator Howard Marklein. He’s held District 17 for over a decade, even in elections where Democrats have won the top of the ticket. He did not respond to our requests for an interview, but he responded to WPR’s 2026 Voter Guide, saying “We have cut taxes by more than $42 billion, saving the average taxpayer thousands of dollars. We have made investments in the health care system to keep local hospitals and clinics open and increase access to care. We have made great progress, but there is still more to do to address the rising cost of living and affordability of everyday essentials. We must continue to cut taxes, build affordable housing and reduce the cost of health care.” Even with headwinds, Republicans in the Senate are standing firm against the commotion. Senator Patrick Testin is not up for re-election, but as president pro tempore of the Senate, he’s a leader in maintaining a Republican majority.

Patrick Testin:
What we can control are state and local issues, which is why our candidates have been laser focused since day one of doing everything that they can to create that insulation from any potential national headwinds.

Elijah Pines:
Republicans are dropping their own big checks. The Committee to Elect a Republican Senate has raised more money this year than ever, and more than $7 million.

Patrick Testin:
I think we all recognize what’s at stake. We were very fortunate, unlike four years ago, when we had a very heated primary for governor here in the state of Wisconsin on the Republican side. By and large, Republicans coalesced around Congressman Tom Tiffany. And I’m hopeful that Tom is going to be our next governor.

Elijah Pines:
There’s some exceptional forces against Republicans this year, but even for local elections, midterms are just as bearish as ever.

Barry Burden:
Doesn’t guarantee that Democrats win it all but Republicans, I think, will have to be thankful if they’re able to hold on to one or both chambers.

Elijah Pines:
Reporting from Madison, I’m Elijah Pines for “Here & Now.”

Frederica Freyberg:
A triumphant city of Milwaukee poured into the streets once again for the celebration parade and rally for the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday. The scrappy small market team won the World Series for the first time after clinching the title Wednesday night in Tampa. The victory was sweet and historic, especially for people like retired Journal Sentinel reporter Tom Haudricourt, who covered the Brewers for 36 years, including the last time the team made it to the championship but lost in 1982.
Did you believe this day would come that the Brewers would win the World Series?

Tom Haudricourt:
I hate to say — use the word inevitable, because how can somebody that took 40 — something that took 44 years be inevitable? But it just started to get that feel after a while, as they marched through the postseason, that it was inevitable they were going to win. But to go from getting swept by the Dodgers last year to sweeping the Dodgers this year, I don’t know if there’s ever been a more dramatic flip.

Frederica Freyberg:
So the Brewers’ mantra is “Win Our Way.” What does that mean?

Tom Haudricourt:
They don’t hit a lot of home runs. And we’re sort of in an era when home runs are like king. I think they were last in the league in home runs. They sort of scrap and claw, steal bases, bunt, play like what’s called “old school baseball.” And then they just bullpen you to death. They just do it in a team concept that’s – I’m telling you – not that easy to do over 162 games. And then 13 more in the postseason.

Frederica Freyberg:
How even sweeter is it that the Milwaukee Brewers are Major League Baseball’s smallest market team?

Tom Haudricourt:
Yeah, I mean, it’s something to take pride in. You know, Tampa Bay is a small one too so two — I don’t know how it happened, Frederica, because small market teams just don’t make it to the World Series. There’s sort of a model franchise right now. Everybody’s going to look at the Brewers and want to emulate them. You know and they say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? Well, there’s a lot of teams that are going to take a good, hard look at what the Brewers are doing and see if they can do it that way also.

Frederica Freyberg:
So what is it like to see the city of Milwaukee kind of erupting over this win?

Tom Haudricourt:
Yeah. Well, you know, how can you not be happy for the city. You know, they’ve waited for this a long time. You know Milwaukee’s a really good baseball town, Frederica. They annually draw in the top half of attendance despite their small market. I think they averaged like 34,000 this year. Just Wednesday night, let’s do the math. It looked like they had about 25,000 people at the game. That’s crazy. I don’t know how they all got down there and got tickets. But it was like a home game for them. So 25,000 there. Then like 35,000 in AmFam for a watch party to watch it on a big screen. But then I don’t know how many people can squeeze into the Deer District, but it looked like a few thousand, right? So add those all together along with the people watching on television. And this is an extraordinary volume of people watching the same event, both live, in person and on TV. It’s, I mean, it’s just incredible, absolutely incredible. Milwaukee is just a very good baseball town. Let’s not forget, you know, the — it’s not a lot of people left who were Braves fans in the ’50s. But that team was extraordinarily successful and drew very well for the market. And considering how long they had to wait to get to the World Series, you know, a lot of fan bases might have just thrown up their hands and said enough, but this one never did. And all they’ve ever wanted is for the team to be competitive. In the last decade, they’ve really been competitive. And then once you get competitive, you dream of that next highest step, getting to the World Series. And let me just be frank about getting to the World Series. As huge as an accomplishment as that was to get there after 44 years, if they wouldn’t have won it, people were going to be devastated. You know, when you don’t get there very often when you get there, you got to win. Blizzards can’t shut down the Milwaukee Public School system but the Brewers winning the World Series can. I find that extraordinary. So just party like it’s 1982. I know they will. I know they already will. I asked somebody today if there’s any beer left in Milwaukee. The beer is kind of what invented that city but this party’s going to go on for a while, isn’t it?

Frederica Freyberg:
For more on this and other issues facing Wisconsin, visit our website at PBSWisconsin.org and then click on the news tab. That’s our program for tonight. I’m Frederica Freyberg. Have a good weekend.

Announcer:
Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.