>> The following program is a PBS Wisconsin Original production.

>> This program is part of our Here and Now.

2026 Election Coverage.

For the first time in franchise history, the Milwaukee Brewers unlocked the World Series achievement and the state turns its attention to the next big event the midterm elections.

[MUSIC] 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 is "Here& Now" for October 30th.

[MUSIC] >> Funding for Here and Now is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

>> 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 and now, senior political reporter Zac Schultz was in Milwaukee and has this story.

>> And so we're probably started to tell in 72nd or something.

we'll work our way.

>> We'll work our way down.

>> Reaching voters in Wisconsin isn't just about television commercials.

>> How are you doing, sir?

Just out here.

Canvasing for Lee Whiting, who's running for state assembly in this district.

>> Often it comes down to volunteers knocking doors.

>> Hello.

Just out here.

Canvasing for Lee Whiting, who's.

>> Talking with voters one at a time.

>> Not sure if there's any issues that you're within Wisconsin, but.

>> For Republicans in Milwaukee County, finding a friendly door can be a challenge.

>> Lee isn't.

He's a Republican.

>> Oh, okay, then I forget.

>> My name's Hilario.

I'm.

I truly believe that Wisconsin's a Republican state.

It's just we have a turnout problem on our side.

And they don't realize that inflation has actually gone down now.

>> Yeah, exactly.

>> 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.

>> Milwaukee is the key to winning statewide elections, whether it's the white House, presidential elections or statewide offices for governor.

>> It's a message Tiffany repeats at his pub talks across the state.

>> We have a 72 county strategy.

We're not ignoring Milwaukee County.

We are not ignoring Dane County.

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

>> The midterms are coming up, and I hope you people are really spirited because.

>> Midterm elections often see the party of the president perform poorly.

And with Donald Trump's approval ratings at all time lows.

>> Tom Tiffany is one of the best congressmen.

>> Tiffany has spent a good chunk of the election trying to distance himself from Trump.

>> Now he's running for a thing called governor, and you have.

>> Tiffany needs Trump supporters to show up on Election Day.

But he really doesn't want to talk about Donald Trump.

>> 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.

>> Because we cannot allow Maga extremism to continue in the state of Wisconsin.

Y'all.

>> For Democrat David Crowley.

He wants voters to connect Tiffany with Trump.

>> 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.

>> Hilario Deleon runs into voters who aren't happy with Trump.

>> You get maniac in the white House and you got everything else.

>> But he says most Republicans don't regret their vote in 2024.

>> I had already planned on voting for him.

>> 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.

>> There's a lot of talk among family and friends and coworkers, people regretting voting for Trump.

>> 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.

>> Our goal is to continuously increase the level of political participation by the Latino community and youth as well.

>> God bless the American people.

God bless President Trump and God bless the United States of America.

>> Two years ago, Milwaukee hosted the GOP convention.

>> Immigration is a big problem in every community in the United States.

>> 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.

>> Sometimes they're the strongest supporters of it.

They.

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.

My dad's side.

>> After two years of Ice raids, tariffs and inflation.

The question going into 26 was whether the Hispanic shift was permanent or a mirage.

>> The biggest shift was not the shift towards Trump as just the shift of stepping away from voting.

>> Voces de la Frontera action is located on Milwaukee's south side, in the heart of the Hispanic part of the city.

There are nearly 500,000 Hispanics living in the state, with more than half in southeast Wisconsin.

>> 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.

>> Hi, Priscilla.

My name is Vanessa.

I'm an organizer with voces de la Frontera.

Action.

Have you heard of voces before?

>> That's why voces has volunteers running a 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.

>> 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.

>> Get out the vote.

Campaigns are critical in these areas.

>> Just traditionally speaking, for Latinos, there is a lower voter turnout.

And we actually have seen that here in the South Side.

>> Cristable 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.

>> 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 US citizen.

>> We're also telling people to vote early.

>> Martinez says Latino voters are motivated to support David Crowley for governor.

>> 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.

>> Crowley already represents this area as Milwaukee County Executive.

>> 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.

>> We asked Tom Tiffany what his message was for Hispanic voters.

>> 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.

>> Deleon says this is actually the correct approach.

>> They identify themselves as a voter and the Hispanic second.

>> Deleon says Hispanics biggest issues are the same as all voters.

>> Affordability is a concern.

But, you know, another concern that is probably equally or almost beyond that is public safety.

People are scared.

>> Norman Ortiz agrees.

The issues intersect with all voters, but says it's okay to speak directly to Hispanics.

>> Immigrants are definitely part of the working class.

Latinos are part of the working class, disproportionately.

So all 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.

>> 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.

>> 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 it's a testament to the power that the Latino community has.

>> Reporting from Milwaukee.

I'm Zac Schultz for "Here& Now".

>> 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.

>> Good to be here.

>> 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 independent.

So a couple of questions around this.

How important is that certainty or already voted spread for the candidates?

>> 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.

>> 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.

>> 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.

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 are 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.

>> So things could break in the in the final days.

Because do these numbers from your poll hold up since you were in the field with that?

>> 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 in 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.

>> As to independents.

You find that a 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?

>> 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.

They in 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 on Republicans.

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?

>> Yeah, 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.

>> All right, Charles Franklin, thanks very much.

As to the state House, Republicans have controlled both chambers of the Wisconsin legislature for 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 and now, reporter Elijah Pines has the story.

>> Thank you all for coming out today.

>> 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.

>> 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 any anything else.

>> 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 $1 million from the party and visits from national figures like U.S.

Senator 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.

>> 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.

>> Senate district 17 is one of four battleground races identified by the Marquette Law School.

The others include districts five, 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.

>> 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.

>> 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 Wp'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 reelection, but as president pro tempore of the Senate, he's a leader in maintaining a Republican majority.

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 for any potential national headwinds.

>> 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.

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.

The large, Republicans coalesced around Congressman Tom Tiffany.

And I'm hopeful that Tom is going to be our next governor.

>> There's some exceptional forces against Republicans this year, but even for local elections, midterms are just as bearish as ever.

>> 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.

>> Reporting from Madison.

I'm Elijah Pines for "Here& Now".

>> 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?

>> I hate to say it.

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 they are 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.

>> So the Brewers mantra is win our way.

What does that mean?

>> They don't hit a lot of home runs.

And we're sort of in an era when home runs are like King.

They 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 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.

>> How even sweeter is it that the Milwaukee Brewers are Major League Baseball's smallest market team?

>> Yeah, I mean, it's something to take pride in.

You know, Tampa Tampa Bay was is a small one too.

So two I don't know how it happened, Frederico, 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 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.

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

>> Yeah.

Well, you know, how can you not be happy for the city.

You know they they've waited for this a long time.

You know Milwaukee's a really good baseball town.

Rodriguez.

They they they annually draw in the top half of attendance despite their small market.

I think they averaged like 34,000 this year.

Just just 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 AM fam 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, 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 are Braves fans in the 50s.

But that team was extraordinarily successful and drew very well for the market.

So.

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 getting to the World Series.

And let me just be frank about getting to the World Series.

It was as huge as an accomplishment as that was to get there.

After 44 years.

If they wouldn't have won it, it people were going to be devastated.

You know, when you don't get there very often when you get there, you gotta 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 well, I know they already will.

I asked somebody today if there's any beer left in Milwaukee.

And the beer is kind of what invented that city.

But this party's going to go on for a while, isn't it?

>> For more on this and other issues facing Wisconsin, visit our website at PBS wisconsin.org and then click on the news tab.

That's our program for tonight.

I'm Frederica Freyberg.

Have a good weekend.

>> Funding for "Here& Now" is provided by the fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.