Could U.S. Senate Races Impact Gubernatorial Races?

Noted: In the 2010 midterms, the Tea Party movement helped Republicans win both the gubernatorial and Senate races in Florida and Wisconsin. The races in Wisconsin, for instance, “were fueled by anger at the Obama administration,” says University of Wisconsin political scientist Barry Burden. Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker emphasized his opposition to Washington, and Ron Johnson, the Republican Senate challenger to Democratic incumbent Russ Feingold, “appeared on the scene out of nowhere, motivated almost entirely by his opposition to the Affordable Care Act.”