I originally posted this TL on uselectionatlas.org, but I decided to move it here because Wikiboxes look much better on this site than on that one. I don't know if that's breaking a rule, but I'm doing it anyway. I hope you enjoy this TL.
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The year was 2004, and Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold had just started his own party. Feingold, a lifelong Democrat, after being the only Senator to vote against the USA PATRIOT Act and seeing the majority of his Party in Senate vote to authorize the Iraq War had decided that, as much as he loved his party, he could no longer be a Democrat. On January 17th, 2004, Feingold announced he was going to leave the Democratic Party and instead become a Senator of his own newly founded Progressive Party, but would caucus with the Democrats. The Democratic Party in Wisconsin figured that running a Democrat would only risk splitting the liberal vote and decided instead to endorse Feingold in his upcoming re-election bid. So begins our story.