US labour unions and Democrats were dealt a significant blow after an expensive campaign to oust six Republican state senators in Wisconsin fell short of expectations, emboldening Republican governors across the country who have sought to put a squeeze on union rights in their efforts to cut spending.

Democrats succeeded in replacing two Republicans in the hotly contested recall election, which was seen by many analysts and activists as a dress rehearsal for the 2012 presidential contest, but failed to turnover a third seat, falling short of their goal to recapture the majority of the Wisconsin state senate.

Although the Republican majority in the senate has been narrowed – they now have a one-seat advantage on their Democratic rivals – the results pointed to weakness within the national labour movement, which was estimated to have spent about $20m on the Wisconsin campaign.

The recalls were set into motion following a highly charged standoff in February between Democratic lawmakers and their labour union supporters and Republican governor Scott Walker in the wake of his push for a state budget that dramatically curbed public workers’ collective bargaining rights.

The results were especially welcomed by Mr Walker, who faces his own recall challenge, and said the election proved that voters supported his agenda, which he said was bringing thousands of jobs into the state.

But he will continue to face resistance from the left. In a note to reporters, Democratic state party chairman Mike Tate said: “If we can do all of this against entrenched Republicans on their own turf, imagine our success … when all of Wisconsin can have its voice heard on Governor Walker’s extreme, divisive agenda.”

The AFL-CIO labour union sought to play down the results on Wednesday and emphasised that the districts it campaigned in had consistently elected Republicans over the years. Although Barack Obama, the US president, won Wisconsin by 14 points in 2008 – a victory many believe he will have to repeat next year – the union said Democrats had not been elected in any of the targeted districts in that year.

One influential conservative blogger and activist, Erick Erickson, warned Republicans against reading too much into the Wisconsin victory, which he said was only being watched by “diehard partisans and political junkies”.

Mr Erickson said that Republicans had nearly been caught “flat-footed” by the episode and warned that Democrats had simply “overplayed” their hand, thereby motivating Republican voters.

“I think we can also extrapolate that unions are on the verge of becoming paper tigers, but I suspect after they analyse just how they squandered $20m they won’t repeat the same mistakes, however much I hope they will,” he wrote on his blog, RedState.com.

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