One of several major mistakes made by the failed campaign of 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton was essentially ignoring and taking for granted the critical battleground state of Wisconsin -- a mistake that Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign seems intent on not repeating.

In a subtle but clear repudiation of Hillary's failure to focus on Wisconsin, the Harris campaign has dispatched her husband, former President Bill Clinton, to try and rally support for the Democratic candidate in the final days before the election, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

The last-minute visit of Clinton to Wisconsin, just one of several events planned over the coming days by both campaigns, reveals just how important the Badger State and its electoral votes are to both candidates' path to victory on November 5.

Clinton headed to Wisconsin for Harris

According to the Journal-Sentinel, former President Clinton will make his first visit to Wisconsin in this current election cycle this week after previously campaigning for VP Harris in other crucial swing states like Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina.

Clinton will arrive on Thursday for events in Fox Valley and Milwaukee, though the specific locations and times of those events have not yet been announced.

He is expected to encourage Democrats to turn out for Harris in the early voting period, according to the campaign, which runs through November 3. However, given his less-than-stellar reputation, Clinton may not be the best mouthpiece for Harris to rely upon in the final stretch of the campaign.

Brian Schimming, chairman of the Wisconsin GOP, referenced Clinton's sex scandals and impeachment in a statement to the outlet that sarcastically said, "In their latest effort to convince voters that decency and character are on the ballot this November, Wisconsin Democrats are turning to Bill Clinton to make their case. Good luck with that."

Both campaigns aim to win Wisconsin's votes

Of course, former President Clinton will not be the only member of VP Harris' campaign team to travel to Wisconsin in the final week of the campaign and hopefully avoid the catastrophic mistake of the 2016 Clinton campaign that failed to visit the battleground state even once during that cycle's general election.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, was in Waukesha County on Monday to try and flip that Republican-leaning area from red to blue while Harris herself will be in Madison on Wednesday to try and bolster her support among students and young voters in that college town.

And, to be sure, the state is not going uncontested, as former President Trump's campaign is making a strong play of its own with multiple events planned, according to the Journal-Sentinel.

On Monday, GOP vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) was campaigning in Racine and Wausau, while Trump on Wednesday will rally in Green Bay alongside beloved former Packers quarterback Brett Favre. Trump on Friday will then hold another rally in Milwaukee at the same arena where the Republican National Convention was held earlier in the summer.

What do the polls say?

According to RealClearPolling's average of Wisconsin's state polls, VP Harris currently holds a marginal 0.2-point lead over former President Trump, which is well shy of the 6.4-point and 5.4-point leads that President Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton held in the state on the same date in the 2020 and 2016 races, respectively.

More broadly, RCP's national average has Trump up over Harris by 0.4 points, which is also a stark change from the past two cycles when Biden led nationally by 7.5 points in 2020 and Clinton was desperately clinging to a 1.7-point lead in 2016 -- both of which evaporated by Election Day, though Biden somehow managed to eke out a victory while Clinton lost in disastrous fashion.

As for the rest of the critical battleground states that so often prove electorally decisive, Harris is just barely ahead in Michigan as well as Wisconsin, while Trump has slim leads in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.