'Anybody could win this election': Polls tighten in Senate race between Baldwin and Hovde
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- After months of Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin holding a strong lead in polls against her GOP opponent Eric Hovde, the playing field seems to be narrowing in Wisconsin.
Earlier this week, the Cook Political Report deemed Wisconsin's senate race a "toss-up," shifting from what they initially called a "lean Democrat" race.
The report's Swing State Project survey shows Senator Baldwin's seven-point lead from August shrinking to just two points over Hovde.
"I think the polls are telling us that anybody could win this election," said Mordecai Lee, professor emeritus at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Wisconsin's U.S. Senate race is now potentially mirroring other races in the state, with close calls ahead of election day.
Lee believes this could be due to aggressive political ads.
"I'm really stunned by the television advertising that I'm seeing for these races, I mean, it is brutal," he told CBS 58 Sunday.
National GOP donors are also now funding Hovde's campaign.
The Wall Street Journal reports the Senate Leadership Fund Political Action Committee is planning to spend $17 million on ads attacking Baldwin.
"Each of them is looking for just that little secret sauce, that little attack line that's going to change the race, that's going to make a difference," Lee said.
Lee believes the shift could also be overlap from the close Presidential race, and party loyalty.
"It used to be very common in Wisconsin for a voter to say 'I vote for the candidate, not the party.' In other words, I like this person, I don't care what party they are. I like that person, I don't care what party they are," Lee said. "But that's happening less and less in Wisconsin."
He said the close polls prove Wisconsin voters could essentially determine who will take the Senate majority, and who will be in the White House.
"The fact that we've got a tight Presidential race, and a tight U.S. Senate race is a real symbol of us being a battleground state," Lee said.
Wisconsin will get to see both Senator Tammy Baldwin and Eric Hovde face-off this Friday, Oct. 18, in their first and only debate, monitored by the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association.