MILWAUKEE — NBC News and Meet The Press have launched its County to County effort - a deep dive into voter enthusiasm in Democratic and Republican counties across the country.
Dane County is one of the seven counties in battleground states the network will be watching in 2022.
There's no doubt Dane County is a massive solid blue county for Democrats in a state that is politically divided.
"Wisconsin is the avatar of America these days, which is, you know, we're very closely divided, very narrowly divided on politics, but swing voters don't live next door to each other anymore," said Chuck Todd, moderator of Meet The Press. "In many ways, the swing voter in Wisconsin is a voter that swings between voting and not voting."
It's for that reason Meet the Press will focus on Dane County during its 2022 nationwide County to County project to measure voter enthusiasm.
Several Democrats have already lined up to challenge Republican Senator Ron Johnson, who has yet to commit one way or the other on seeking a third term.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is also facing a political battle in 2022.
"Dane and Milwaukee is you know, you know, combined. Democrats, if turnout is lagging in Milwaukee and Dane, they just don't win statewide, period," said Todd.
Todd says the Democratic Party is in a tug of war right now over President Biden's multi-trillion-dollar social spending plan called Build Back Better.
Dane County is the fastest growing county in the state with the biggest college campus in Madison, and a likely litmus test for how well Democrats will do in 2022.
"I do think the first test of this will be the primary turnout," said Todd. "And particularly the primary turnout in Dane County, because the Senate primary, in particular, is going to be very animated I think, particularly between progressives and sort of the pragmatist."
Dane is one of seven Democratic and Republican counties NBC News will focus on in 2022. The others include: Chattooga County, GA, Luzerne County, PA, Delaware County, OH, Duval County, FL, Anson County, NC, Washoe County, Nevada.
