Adam Jarchow defeated fellow GOP state Rep. Shannon Zimmerman for the Republican nomination in the 10th SD Tuesday, setting up a January matchup with Dem Patty Schachtner, the St. Croix County medical examiner.

Libertarian Brian Corriea is also on the ballot, and the winner of the Jan. 16 special election will fill the seat of Republican Sheila Harsdorf, who was appointed DATCP secretary.

Jarchow and Zimmerman waged an increasingly bitter fight in the race for the GOP nomination, both over the airwaves and through mail. One Jarchow mailer accused Zimmerman of not living in the district and said voters couldn’t trust him. A Zimmerman radio ad knocked his opponent for siding with Dems against Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s priorities.

According to unofficial returns posted on county clerk websites, Jarchow had 4,020 votes, while Zimmerman had 3,161.

Zimmerman said no single issue drove the result. Rather, he said it was a matter of which voters were motivated to turn out for a rare December primary. Zimmerman won St. Croix County 1,884-1,635. But Jarchow more than made up for that in Polk County, where he lives. Jarchow’s advantage there was 1,688-491.

Jarchow wrote in a text message he was humbled by his win and thanked Zimmerman for a hard fought race.

“I look forward to carrying our message of less government, lower taxes and more liberty into the general election in January,” he said.

Zimmerman said he will “100 percent support” Jarchow in the general election and both lawmakers probably will look back at the primary and wish they had handled some things differently.

“I kind of look at it like two brothers who got into a little scrap in the backyard,” Zimmerman said. “We’re going to get inside and get back in the building or the house, if you will and everything is going to be fine.”

The Dem primary was much less intense with Schachtner raising $13,210 in the pre-primary period, while neither of her opponents raised more than $1,200.

By comparison, Zimmerman reported $215,568 in receipts, boosted by $184,400 he gave the campaign. Jarchow listed $151,253 raised, including a $50,000 personal loan.

Schachtner was the Senate Dems’ preferred candidate in the three-way primary. She cleaned up in St. Croix County as she won the primary with 3,884 votes. John Calabrese, a self-employed wood worker, finished with 1,364 votes, while Reuben Herfindahl, the owner of an IT services firm had 260.

“From defending health care to creating family-supporting jobs to protecting our environment, my message is simple — let’s find common-sense solutions that put people first,” Schachtner said. “I look forward to spending the next month talking with voters across the 10th about how I can best meet their needs.”

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