Scott Walker (politician)

Scott Walker (politician)

Scott Kevin Walker (born November 2, 1967) is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party who currently serves as the 45th Governor of Wisconsin. Walker took office on January 3, 2011, after defeating Democratic candidate Tom Barrett, obtaining 52% of the vote in the November 2010 general election. Walker had served as County Executive of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, from 2002 to 2010, before which he was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1993 to 2002.

Walker became a figure of national recognition and controversy because of his proposed "Wisconsin budget repair bill". The bill, which was passed by the Wisconsin Legislature, significantly changed the collective bargaining process for most public employees in Wisconsin. Opponents of Walker's actions launched a push for a recall election, and received enough support to force an election on June 5, 2012, a first for a governor in the state of Wisconsin. Walker successfully kept his seat as governor after winning the Wisconsin recall election against opponent Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett. Walker won the recall by a slightly larger margin (53% to 46%) than the 2010 election (52% to 46%), making him the first U.S. governor to have successfully kept the seat as governor in a recall election.