Epic Wisconsin turnout, photo finish predicted

Today in Wisconsin.

Turnout is huge, emotions are running high and today's recall election is expected to be thisclose.

@StuLevitan tweets that an astounding 33 percent of total registered voters came to the polls in the first four hours at Blue Hoyt School on Madison's west side. (That's not good for Scott Walker.)

@PurpleCatMama tweets (unsurprisingly) that polling numbers will be coming in between 9-10 pm, with recount lawyers standing by on both sides.

Wisconsin Teamsters were up before dawn to hold signs and flags on overpasses. Now they're phone banking to get every last Teamster vote out.

Today at the union hall.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

More than $60 million has flooded into Wisconsin, and prominent politicians from both parties have traveled to the state to campaign in what many have called the nation's second-most important election this year. Recent polls showed Mr. Walker with a slim lead over Tom Barrett, the Democratic Mayor of Milwaukee, with both sides girding for a photo finish. 

The race has fueled emotions on both sides of the electorate, and officials expect turnout to be high. At the polling station at the Kenosha Public Museum in the state's southeast corner, about 25 people waited in line at 7 a.m. for polls to open--several times more than in a typical election, said Peggy Gregorski, a museum official.

Note: Of that $60 million, nearly $50 million went to Walker, and most of that came from out of state.

It's an epic battle between the money of the 1% and the boots of the 99% on the ground. As Katrina van den Heuvel wrote today in The Washington Post:

...we are witnessing the first major battle between astronomical numbers of people and astronomical amounts of money. 

As I write this, Walker leads in the polls, and if progressive turnout is merely ordinary, he will likely win. On the other hand, if we see the same groundswell today as on the days that led to this one, Walker can be defeated. Yet, big as this election is, it is only the first test of the progressive response to an electoral landscape overrun with money from corporations and wealthy individuals.

The tweetosphere captures the excitement behind the cheese curtain:

@legaleagle: The solidarity we’ve seen since Feb ‘11 has been one of the greatest gifts of my life. If I live to be 113, few things will measure up.

@tkalex9052 It is a historic day in beautiful Wisconsin!!!! GET OUT AND VOTE!!!! #Wirecall #Wiunion 

@sswanbeck: Solidarity and cheese curds!! #recallwalker #Wisconsin #WIrecall #gotv #vote @Barrett4WI #WIunion

@WIProud: Cars parked everywhere. Epic turnout. It's like parking at a badger football game. #DEFEATWALKER #WIUnion #WIRecall

We love that Tom Morello tweeted GOTV messages:

@tmorello: Wisconsin has SAME DAY VOTER REGISTRATION at polls tomorrow. http://t.co/0sZlCJeS #wiunion

We can do this!