Battle for the Badger State 2020: Harsh Realities (Part 1) Artwork

The Great Purple State

Conall and Emerson talk history and politics in Wisconsin and around the world. From presidential elections to nuclear disarmament treaties, from the history of Wisconsin to the history of the rise and fall of fascism in Europe, we cover a wide breadth of topics in a conversational way.

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The Great Purple State

Battle for the Badger State 2020: Harsh Realities (Part 1)

July 12, 2021 • Conall & Emerson • Episode 23

In this first episode of a 4 part series, Emerson and Conall recount the 2020 presidential election in Wisconsin. Remembering our experiences on that fateful election night back in November, we segue into a broader discussion of the dynamics of the election as they played out in Wisconsin (hopefully you like the general silliness in Emerson's masterful introduction).

We go over the contentious 2020 Democratic primary leading up to Wisconsin's Democratic primary and the anxieties felt by many opponents of Trump over winning back the Midwest, including the pivotal tipping point state of Wisconsin - and with it the path back to the White House. In a lengthy discussion, Conall analyzes how the GOP tried to weaponize the upsurge of BLM protests that were sparked by the murder of George Floyd not only in Minneapolis, but also in places like Kenosha after Jacob Blake was shot by a police officer.

We also discuss the spring of 2020 Wisconsin Supreme Court race, and how that framed the many, many larger battles over voting access and voting rights in the months to come.

FACTUAL CORRECTION: Biden spoke on the night of the election in Wilmington, Delaware from the Chase Center, not from his campaign's Pennsylvania-based headquarters.