If donations from individuals are harbingers of actual votes, Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama should cruise through the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday, Feb. 19.

The Illinois senator's presidential campaign has raised more than $338,455 from individual Wisconsin donors so far, nearly doubling the donations raised by Democratic challenger Hillary Clinton and more than doubling the donations raised by any of the remaining Republican contenders.

Here are the campaign donations for the candidates from Wisconsin residents, according to the Center for Responsive Politics:

• Barack Obama  (D) $338,455
• Hillary Clinton (D) $173,926
• John McCain (R) $158,437
• Mitt Romney (R) $137,554
• Mike Huckabee (R) $45,671

Obama's actual Wisconsin total is even more than the listed amount, because he has collected donations from so many voters that the list of smaller donations from individuals overwhelms the campaign finance tracking web site, www.opensecrets.org.

Just like the general electorate, Wisconsin's business leaders are taking sides in the presidential race.

Notable Wisconsin donors for Obama include:
Matthew Boller, attorney, Boller and Vaughn, Madison, $ 11,500
Bonnie Joseph, property management, Bock Enterprises, Fox Point, $ 4,600
Edward, Ream, self-Employed computer programmer, Madison, $4,600
Winslow Sargeant, Venture Investors, Middleton $4,600
Chris Abele, CEO, Argosy Foundation, Milwaukee, $2,300
Bruce Arbit, executive, AB Data, Milwaukee, $2,300
William Bass, CEO, Fair Indigo, Fitchburg, $2,300
James Berbee, founder, Berbee Information Networks Corp., Madison, $2,300
John, Brogan, banker, Brogan Bank $ 2,300
Craig Karmazin, president, Good Karma Broadcasting, Beaver Dam, $2,300
Donald Layden, senior executive vice president, Metavante Corp., Milwaukee, $2,300
Marc Marotta, attorney, Foley & Lardner, Milwaukee, $2,300
Jeffrey Neubauer, CEO, Kranz Inc., Racine, $2,300
Charles Pruitt, executive, AB Data, Shorewood, $2,300
Suzanne Selig, wife of MLB Commissioner Bud Selig, Milwaukee, $2,300
Jay Urban, attorney, Urban and Taylor, Shorewood, $2,300
Michael Hayford, COO Metavante, Milwaukee, $2,000
Barry Mandel, real estate developer, Mandel Group Inc, Milwaukee, $2,000
David Marcus, investor, Marcus Investment, Milwaukee, $2,000
Linda Marcus, executive, Marcus Corp., Milwaukee $2,000
Joel Quadracci, CFO, Quad Graphics, Hartland, $2,000
Richard Abdoo, retired Wisconsin Energy Corp. CEO, Milwaukee, $2,000
Nancy Pinter, CEO, Luther Manor, Milwaukee, $2,000
Margaret Hopkins, senior vice president, Kohl's Corp., Milwaukee, $1,600
John Gehl, Gehl Foods Inc, Nashotah, $1,300
Rimas Buinevicius, CEO, Sonic Foundry, Madison, $1,000
John Daniels, attorney, Quarles Brady, Mequon $1,000
Andrew Gehl, president, Gehl Foods Inc, Hartland, $1,000
John Gehl, CEO, Gehl's Inc, Hartland, $1,000
Gary Grunau, senior vice president, Gilbane Building Corp., Milwaukee, $1,000
Margaret Henningsen, owner, Legacy Bank, Milwaukee, $1,000
Frank Martire, president and CEO, Metavante, Milwaukee, $1,000
Peter McAvoy, Sixteenth Street Community Health Center, Milwaukee, $1,000
William Orenstein, CEO, Williams Development, Milwaukee, $1,000
Deloris Sims, CEO and president, Legacy Bank, $1,000

Notable Wisconsin donors for Clinton include:
Richard Weening, CEO, Cumulus Media Inc, Wauwatosa, $9,200
Tom and Katherine Burgess, AEI, DePere, $4,600
Timothy Burns, Heller Ehrman LLP, Madison, $6,900
Beverly Greenberg, executive, TimeWarner Cable, Milwaukee, $4,600
Marty Greenberg, attorney, Milwaukee, $2,300
John Kennedy, general counsel, Johnson Controls, Mequon, $4,600
John Lowry, retail, Harley-Davidson, Bayside, $4,600
Justin Mortara, Mortara Instrument, Milwaukee, $4,600
Micheal Polaski, Specialty Underwriters, Oak Creek, $4,600
Brijetta Hall-Waller, project coordinator, Hall Financial Group $4,600
Carroll Carlson, Executive, KMTSJ Inc., Augusta, $2,000
Charlie Ahrens, vice president, K2 Micro Systems, Pewaukee, $1,000
Shah Haqqi, president, SEL Global Consulting, Brookfield, $1,000
Emery Harlan, attorney, Gonzales, Saggio, Harlen, Brookfield, $1,000

Notable Wisconsin donors for McCain include:
Bradley Page, attorney, Davis & Kuelthan, Germantown, $4,600
John Schwab, partner, Wipfli, Milwaukee, $4,600
Steven Berghs, vice president, Piper Jaffray, Hudson, $2,300
Natalie Black, attorney, Kohler Co., Oostburg, $2,300
Richard Galling, COO, Hammes Company, Hartland, $2,300
Ted Kellner, investment manager, Fiduciary Management Inc., Mequon, $2,300
Charles Trainer, owner, Glenora Co., Milwaukee, $2,300
Dennis Wallestad, CFO, Pershing LLC, Elm Grove, $2,300
Andrew Ziegler, Artisan Partners, Milwaukee, $2,300
Christopher Hammes, financial analyst, Hammes Co., Mequon, $1,500
Kurt Bechthold, executive, Payne & Dolan, Mequon, $1,000
Ned Bechthold, engineer, Payne & Dolan, Waukesha, $1,000
John Cullen, advisor, J.P. Cullen & Sons Inc, Janesville, $1,000
Curt Culver, CEO, MGIC Investment Corp., Nashotah, $1,000
Larry Ferguson, CEO, Scheuler Foods, Green Bay, $1,000
Robert Schuemann, executive, Signicast Corp., Mequon, $1,000
Edward Zore, executive, Northwestern Mutual Life, River Hills, $1,000

Notable Wisconsin donors for Romney include:
James Connelly, attorney, Foley & Lardner, Milwaukee, $4,600
Donn Thomas, owner, Thomas Precision Machining, Haugen, $4,600
William Calkins, self-employed investor, Ephraim, $2,300
Christine Connelly, CEO, Indian Creek Design LLC, Milwaukee, $2,300
David Eich, lawyer, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Appleton, $2,300
Dave Isaacson, regional manager, U.S. Bank, Pleasant Prairie, $2,300
Kraig Kayser, president, Seneca Foods Corp., Lake Geneva, $2,300
John Koss, chairman, Koss Corp., Milwaukee, $2,300
Marjorie Kozlowski, vice president, Compuware Corp., $2,300
John Link, owner, Link's Snacks, Minong, $2,300
Richard Marschall, attorney, Michael Best and Friedrich, Wales, $2,300
Helen Johnson-Leipold, CEO and chairman, Johnson Outdoors Inc., Racine, $2,100
Craig Leipold, chairman, Nashville Hockey Club, Racine, $2,100
John Shiely, executive, Briggs & Stratton Corp., Elm Grove, $2,100
Charles Waldon, executive, J.L. French Corp./Allotech, Sheboygan, $2,050
Joseph Derosa, president, De Rosa Corp., Wauwatosa, $1,500
Scott Beightol, attorney, Michael Best and Friedrich, Whitefish Bay, $1,000
Bill Berrien, COO, Liberty Dialysis LLC, Milwaukee, $1,000
John Koss Jr., River Hills, $1,000
Daniel Mckeithan, Tamarack Petroleum Co., Milwaukee, $1,000
Jack Taylor, owner, D.C.I. Contractors, Oak Creek, $1,000
Jacob Weissgerber, owner, Weissgerbers Restaurants, Inc, $1,000

Notable Wisconsin donors for Huckabee include:
John Burke Jr., self-employed, Milwaukee, $2,300
Timothy Michels, Michels Corp., Oconomowoc, $2,300
Lynn Sedelbauer, Sedelbauer Farms Inc., Hixton, $2,000
Stephen Kieffer, Kieffer & Company, Inc., Washington Island, $1,500
Philip Lundman, Petersen Resources LLC, Fredonia, $1,000

Some other Wisconsin business leaders donated to campaigns that have since been eliminated. Wisconsin donors for former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani's Republican campaign included Herbert Kohler of Kohler Co. ($2,300), Bradley Foundation president Michael Grebe ($2,300), Fred Luber of Super Steel Corp. ($1,000) and John Ogden of Ogden & Co. ($1,000).

Philanthropist Michael Cudahy, Bulk Petroleum Corp. owner Darshan Dhaliwal and Lubar & Co. executive Sheldon Lubar each contributed $2,300 to former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson's campaign.

Taking sides

Milwaukee attorney Jay Urban was an early supporter of Obama. "Well, my wife (Alicia) and I both gave the maximum amount you can give to Sen. Obama's campaign because we believe he is not only the best Democratic candidate, he is the best person to lead our country in a very difficult time."

Tim Burns, a shareholder at Heller Ehrman LLP in Madison, stands in Clinton's corner. "I will say that I have donated to all three leading democratic candidates. I'm very concerned about the leadership of the country over the past three years. Domestically, we've seen few problems like health care solved. We have seen a skyrocketing national debt, my family has been part of the fortunate few, but I'm troubled by these issues and the impact on our national community. The Democrats have two very strong candidates. What has motivated me about Clinton is that she has a stronger plan on health care. I'm worried about the lack of mandates in Sen. Obama's plan, but he is, of course, a very motivational leader, and I would not be disappointed if he were to win the candidacy."

On the other side of the aisle, John Schwab, partner at Wipfli LLP in Milwaukee, is backing McCain. "Because he is a Vietnam vet and we are at a point in time where the commander in chief is going to have to make some really important decisions. Having been a prisoner of war and having known what that is like - I think he is going to know when he signs our troops into action, he's going to know what he's doing. I don’t think he's the Hollywood type. He seems to be very genuine, and he seems to go with what he believes is right, even when that is not particularly popular."

Philip Lundman of Petersen Resources LLC in Fredonia, says Huckabee is his man. "My contribution to Huckabee was really against McCain. I also contributed to Fred Thompson and really would have liked him to be president. Now, we are left with Romney and McCain, so I will support Romney with reservations. If McCain does receive the nomination, I will vote for him, but not enthusiastically."

A campaign donor for Romney could not be reached for comment today.

Follow the dollars

Even before a single primary or caucus vote was cast, the candidates running for the White House raised and spent more money in 2007 than in all of seven of the last eight presidential elections, the Center for Responsive Politics has found. And based on their year-end campaign finance filings, the candidates are on pace to break 2004's fundraising records before the major parties officially nominate their candidates for this November's contest.

"We knew from the start that this would be the most expensive presidential election ever, but to see the pre-primary season alone costing more than entire elections is remarkable," said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the nonpartisan watchdog group.

In 2007, the field of presidential candidates for '08 raised $582.5 million and spent $481.2 million. That exceeds the total fundraising and spending in each election from 1976 through 2000 - the last time both parties had competitive fields.

Of course, individual donations and voices will be drowned out by funds raised by corporations, labor unions and political action committees (PACs), which will dominate the political advertisements as the general election grows closer.

The top 10 industries contributing to presidential campaigns, and their percentages donating to each party, in 2007 were:

The Center for Responsive Politics is the nation's premier research group tracking money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy. Founded in 1983, the nonpartisan, nonprofit CRP aims to create a more educated voter, an involved citizenry and a more responsive government. CRP's Web site, OpenSecrets.org, is the most comprehensive resource for campaign contributions, lobbying data and analysis. CRP relies on support from a combination of foundation grants and individual contributions.
Today is Super Tuesday, with voters in 22 states casting their primary or caucus votes.

Thousands of Wisconsin businesses are owned and managed by baby boomers who will be reaching retirement over the next 20 years. What then? What will be the "Next Stage" for their business?
The Small Business Times will conduct an M&A Forum, titled "The Next Stage," on Thursday, March 27, from 7:30 to 11 a.m. at The Pfister Hotel, 424 E. Wisconsin Ave.
The event will examine different exit strategies, including recapitalizations, employee stock ownership programs, management buyouts, sale to private equity firms, mergers with strategic partners and more.
Business owners are invited to attend the conference to learn more about their options. In addition, professionals such as attorneys, accountants, bankers, consultants and others who provide services to business owners are invited to attend.
The keynote speaker of the forum will be Mark Herndon, president of Dallas-based Parkwood Advisors LLC, a diversified professional services firm focused on M&A, investment banking and private equity investing. Herndon also is the co-author of "The Complete Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions: Process Tools to support M&A Integration at Every Level."
The event will include breakout sessions from 9:15 to 10 a.m. and from 10:15 to 11 a.m., presented by Emory & Co., The PrivateBank and Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren S.C., sponsors of the event.
The cost to attend is $95 per person or $760 for tables of eight and includes breakfast.
For information or to register, call Sarah Wilson at (414) 336-7129 or email Sarah.Wilson@biztimes.com.

Wisconsin Energy Corp. capped a strong year with fourth quarter net income of $94.3 million, or 80 cents per share, up from $77.0 million, or 65 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The Milwaukee utility company's quarterly operating revenues grew to $1.15 million from $1.10 million.
For the full year, Wisconsin Energy's 2007 earnings from continuing operations totaled $336 million, or $2.84 per share, up from $312 million, or $2.64 per share, in 2006.
Key factors driving the increase in adjusted earnings from continuing operations in 2007 included favorable weather, improved natural gas margins and lower operating costs.
"I'm very pleased with our overall performance in 2007," said Gale Klappa, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Wisconsin Energy. "We invested nearly $1.2 billion in 2007 to improve the energy infrastructure in Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. And over the next three years, we expect to invest another $2.8 billion to maintain reliability and improve fuel diversity for our customers."

Oshkosh Truck Corp. today announced that is shareholders have voted to approve changing the company's name to Oshkosh Corp., to better reflect the company's diverse line of products.
The company is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of specialty access equipment, commercial, fire, emergency and military vehicles and vehicle bodies.
"The new name more appropriately reflects the company's diverse product lines, and establishes Oshkosh as the parent brand of well-established, market leading brands in our access equipment, defense, fire & emergency and commercial segments," said Robert Bohn, chairman and chief executive officer of the company. "The Oshkosh Corp. name still retains our remarkable history, but also allows room for growth and diversification of our products on a global scale."
The name change was approved during the company's annual shareholders meeting in Appleton. The change will not affect the company's stock ticker symbol, OSK, on the New York Stock Exchange.

Com-Tec Security LLC, an Appleton-based designer and manufacturer of electronic security and communication systems, has been acquired by Argyle Security Inc. of San Antonio, Texas.
The acquisition of Com-Tec is expected to grow Argyle's national footprint and provide Argyle with additional capacity for expansion. Com-Tec is also expected to add $1.5 million annually in recurring revenues to Argyle's corrections business.
Following two other completed transactions this year, Peterson Detention Inc. and FireQuest Inc., the Com-Tec transaction represents a continuation of Argyle's integrated strategic buildup effort.
In the reorganization, Sam Youngblood, currently chief executive officer of ISI Security Group, will become president of Argyle Security USA, a new entity that will contain all of Argyle Security's operations in the United States.
Youngblood said, "Argyle Security has successfully completed its first round of acquisitions, which was primarily focused on the corrections market. With this step complete, we now have a carefully selected strategic group of entities that will form the foundation of Argyle Corrections. We expect the expanded national footprint, greater distribution channels, enhanced product and service offerings, and the additional capacity gained through our recent acquisitions will further fuel our growth in the corrections market. We are now sharply focused on building a strategic group of companies on the commercial side of our business."

RedPrairie Corp. today announced it has launched its RedPrairie Routing Portal a web-based solution for coordinating inbound shipments and reverse logistics.
The software enables personnel throughout a company to manage transport delivery requests and coordinate dock scheduling with carriers. Features include validation, location profiles, alerts, and automated communications to and from inbound suppliers. Customer or stock returns are managed, as well.
"Managing inbound freight effectively requires tight coordination among vendors, transportation providers, and customers," said Erv Bluemner, vice president of product marketing, transportation solutions, for RedPrairie, which is based in the Town of Brookfield. "In many cases, this means a lot of phone calls and e-mail are going back and forth between everyone involved in the process. Clearly, this isn’t the most efficient way to do business. It's time-consuming and often leads to miscommunication and confusion. RedPrairie Routing Portal helps companies overcome these limitations by automating critical transportation management processes and improving the flow of information among trading partners."

The outlook for the supply of venture capital in Wisconsin in 2008 is bright, despite rumblings about a recession. Read more in the new edition of the BizTimes Money bulletin.

New Berlin is considering buying water from municipalities with access to Lake Michigan, replacing the wells currently being used as the water source in one-third of the city. Racine is being considered as a possible provider, along with the water utilities of Milwaukee and Oak Creek. Also, the financial meltdown of a high profile downtown Milwaukee condominium project has left Madison-based Anchor Bank on the hook for some $48 million. Read more in SBT's daily roundup of headlines from newspapers across the state at www.biztimes.com.

La Casa de Esperanza recently received a grant of $31,000 from U.S. Cellular to support the agency's services for Hispanic and low-income families in Waukesha. View a slideshow of the grant presentation ceremony in the latest edition of SBT Around Town.

Sixty-four years ago today, Groucho Marx came to Milwaukee to broadcast his radio show and celebrate the 100th birthday of Pabst Brewing Co. Read more and listen to that original broadcast in Small Business Times executive editor Steve Jagler's weekly blog at OnMilwaukee.com, a media partner of SBT.

The BizTimes Stock Index lost .53 points to close at 153.85 Monday, and local stocks sank sharply with the broader market again in early morning trading today. The largest local decliners this morning were Bucyrus International Inc. (down $3.25 to $92.93), Johnson Outdoors Inc. (down $2.11 to $18.46) and Joy Global Inc. (down $1.72 to $63.28). The largest local advancers this morning were Badger Meter Inc. (up 63 cents to $38.55) and Koss Corp. (up 28 cents to $17.97). The BizTimes Stock Index was created by Small Business Times and is monitored by North Shore Bank. The index, which measures the stock values of publicly held companies based in southeastern Wisconsin, is updated daily and can be viewed at www.biztimes.com.