By Gregory L. Giroux
Congressional Quarterly

Electoral votes: 11

Delegates: 37

Chairman: Gov. Tommy G. Thompson

Hotel: Crowne Plaza (215) 561-7500

1996 Election:
Clinton – 49%
Dole – 39%
Perot – 10%

Gov. Tommy G. Thompson is the undisputed king of Wisconsin politics - and leader of the state's 37 delegates who will be attending the Republican convention in Philadelphia. Thompson, who was overwhelmingly elected to a fourth term as governor in 1998, is chairman of the state's Republican delegation for the fourth time.

Thompson twice has flirted with running for president. In 1995, he made several trips to Iowa and New Hampshire but gave up the idea, backing eventual 1996 nominee Bob Dole. In 1999, Thompson thought about it again but realized he could not compete against the fundraising juggernaut of Texas Gov. George W. Bush.

Yet in an interview with Congressional Quarterly in April 1999, when he all but officially had decided not to enter the race, Thompson said he still had "a hankering" to be president.

His decision to defer to Bush may have been somewhat bittersweet for Thompson. With his four terms as governor preceded by 20 years in the state Assembly, Thompson is far more politically experienced than Bush (who, while a member of a family "dynasty," has just his two terms as Texas governor on his political resume).

In addition, Thompson has won re-election by wide margins in a state far less Republican-leaning than Texas, and he is widely regarded by policy observers to be a trailblazer on conservative issues such as school choice and revising the welfare system.

While Thompson is not known for being a spellbinding orator, his keynote address at the July 1999 Republican National Committee meeting in Philadelphia - in which he implored his party not to be intimidated by President Clinton and congressional Democrats - was by far the best-received of any of the speeches.

But Thompson's presidential ambition was hampered by the plain fact that his name is not Bush and his state is not among the most populous.

Thompson nonetheless has one of the highest-profile convention roles. He is chairman of the Platform Committee, a role Bush asked Thompson to undertake.

Back for the Republican festivities is Republican National Committeeman Michael W. Grebe, general counsel of the Republican National Committee and a former Wisconsin Republican chairman. In 1996, Grebe headed the Committee on Arrangements, which planned and managed the party's presidential nominating convention in San Diego. This year he is chairman of the convention's Rules Committee.

Many of the at-large delegates are what Steve King - a delegate and former state Republican chairman - referred to as "friends of Tommy": lawyer John MacIver; construction executive Edward Bolton, a top contributor to Thompson; lobbyist James Klauser; developer Bryce Styza; and Thompson chief of staff Robert Wood, who is an alternate delegate.

Lt. Gov. Scott McCallum, also an alternate, has held the state's No. 2 job under Thompson since 1987 and plans to run for governor in 2002 if Thompson chooses not seek a fifth term that year.

In a series of interviews in June, party activists said the delegation is intently focused on electing Bush. "[Party unity] is the best since Ronald Reagan," said Republican National Committeewoman Mary Buestrin, who is attending her sixth GOP convention and who has been involved in Republican politics since 1962. "We are organized, we are cohesive. Everybody wants to get this job done."

The state GOP's "job" is to carry Wisconsin and its 11 electoral votes - something it has not been able to do over the past three presidential elections. Wisconsin voted for Democrat Michael S. Dukakis in 1988, and Bill Clinton's margins of victory in 1992 and 1996 closely paralleled the nationwide vote.

State Sen. Alberta Darling, an alternate delegate who holds moderate views on some issues, praised Bush for emphasizing "moderation" and "compassionate conservatism." She said such stances would help him win the votes of moderate Republicans who did not vote for his father, George Bush, in 1988 or 1992.

To be sure, the Wisconsin Republican delegation is almost solidly anti-abortion. But Darling, who is chairman of the state platform committee at the Wisconsin Republican convention, said that delegates had an informed debate on such issues as the death penalty and crime prevention and did not fixate on the abortion issue.

WISCONSIN NOTABLES: Gov. Tommy G. Thompson, the delegation chairman; Lt. Gov. Scott McCallum, an alternate delegate; Republican National Committee members Michael W. Grebe (chairman of the convention's Rules Committee) and Mary Buestrin; state Republican Chairman Rick Graber.