Well, they are halfway there. Activists have already gathered 300,000 signatures to recall Gov. Scott Walker – an unbelievable rate of 1,040 signatures an hour. However, despite their enormous success, liberals are still living on a prayer.

With no candidate in mind to pit against Walker in the imminent recall election, Democrats have little chance of succeeding.

Democrats have been focusing on gathering recall petitions instead of selecting a strong candidate who can not only win against Walker, but be a strong enough governor to overcome the Republican-controlled houses and pass the reform for which the left has been campaigning.

All the while, Walker is campaigning, raising funds and gearing up for one of the most expensive elections Wisconsin will see.

Because no candidate has yet to be selected, activists have been signing petitions and campaigning for Walker’s recall with this ideal notion of the perfect democratic governor in mind. However, as seen in the current pool, no ideal candidate exists.

Possible Democratic candidates include Kathleen Falk, Mahlon Mitchell, U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl, U.S. Rep. Dave Obey, U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

As for Kohl and Obey, both are popular Democrats in Wisconsin, but they are way past their political prime. At the age of 76 and 73 respectively, both men are looking to retire instead of run an entire state on the brink of financial collapse.

Kind has shown zero interest in running for governor, refusing to give comments to the press or campaign with the “Recall Walker” folks in Wisconsin. Same goes for Barrett, who already lost to Walker in the 2010 gubernatorial race and has shown little interest in going at it again, especially so close to his defeat.

Erpenbach and Barca were in the thick of the collective bargaining debacle, with Erpenbach fleeing the state and Barca fighting the Republican Assemblymen. However, they are not well known around the state and have very little political experience outside their current roles. It would be very difficult for either of them to win against a political giant such as Walker.

Although Falk has previously run for attorney general and governor (both of which she lost), she is not well known outside of Dane County. Those who do know of Falk, especially in Madison, are not impressed. Her last few years as Dane County executive were plagued with crises, including the failure of the 911 Center connected to a University of Wisconsin student’s murder. She has not proven she can take on the responsibility of running the state, let alone defeat Walker and take on the Republican legislators.

Finally, Mahlon Mitchell – a name only a few people in Madison and almost no one in the greater state know. The man is relatively young and a fresh face to politics, which will be a huge disadvantage in this race. He has not proven himself as a leader or a competent politician. When faced with taking on a Republican giant and a hostile Legislature, is a newbie who you really want for the job?

There is no doubt a recall election will take place. However, with no strong candidate for governor, Democrats still face an enormous hurdle.

It is one thing to be enraged at Walker and wish he had never been elected, but it is an entirely other thing to unseat him. The speed at which the recall petitions are flooding in show Wisconsinites agree with the former, but who can come to the rescue to do the latter?

With that question yet unanswered, Walker is destined to win re-election.

Alex Brousseau ([email protected]) is a second year law student.