In this update:

• Election Updates
• Administration Updates
• Legislative Updates
• Impeachment Updates

Election Updates

Lawmaker election announcements

Following Governor Tony Evers (D) signing his maps into law last week, more lawmakers have been making plans on how to adjust to the new legislative maps. Listed below are the latest announcements from legislators.

• Sen. Dan Feyen (R) announced his bid for the 20th SD. He has represented the 18th SD since 2017 and has been drawn into the 20th SD under the new maps. Sen. Feyen is not paired with any other incumbents, and the district is a 69% GOP leaning district according to the 2022 election results.

• Sen. Dan Knodl (R) announced he is running for the 24th AD, which is also the same district Rep. Janel Brandtjen (R) was drawn into under the new maps. Sen. Knodl said last week that he would not run for reelection to his current Senate seat after being drawn into the 8th SD with Sen. Duey Stroebel (R). The news that Sen. Knodl is running for the 24th AD comes after a recommendation last week from the Ethics Commission that Rep. Brandtjen face criminal charges for alleged campaign finance violations. Rep. Brandtjen has represented the 22nd AD since 2015 and is the only incumbent drawn into the new 24th. Sen. Knodl represented the 24th AD for 14 years before winning a special election for the 8th SD in April 2023. Rep. Brandtjen and Sen. Knodl faced each other in the GOP primary for the 8th SD last year, and Sen. Knodl won 56.8% of the vote, more than doubling Rep. Brandtjen’s vote total.

• Sen. Eric Wimberger (R) said he would run for reelection in the 30th SD after Sen. Robert Cowles (R) and Sen. Andre Jacque (R) were drawn into the district. Sen. Cowles has already announced his intention to move his residence and run for the 2nd SD while Sen. Jacque is considering a bid for Wisconsin’s 8th U.S. Congressional District.

• Rep. Sue Conley (D) announced that she will not be running for reelection of the 44th AD in the fall, saying she plans to serve the remainder of her term and retire from the Legislature. Ann Roe announced her plans to run for the seat right before Rep. Conley’s announcement and has the representative’s backing. Ms. Roe has experience as an educator, small business owner, and nonprofit owner, making her a well-rounded candidate according to Rep. Conley. Her announcement marks the seventh member of the Assembly who has already said they will not be running for next Assembly session.

• Rep. William Penterman (R) announced he will be running in the new 38th Assembly District. Rep. Penterman currently represents the 37th AD and was paired with Rep. Jon Plumer (R) in the 42nd AD. Rep. Plumer currently represents the 42nd. The new 38th AD has no incumbents in the district, and Rep. Penterman said half of his current constituency resides in the new 38th.

• Rep. Kristina Shelton (D) announced she will not be running for reelection this fall. She has been serving the 90th AD since 2020 and said she will not be running for other offices in the fall. The new maps moved her district to a 56.1% Democratic lean from a 59.8% Dem lean. Rep. Shelton was not paired in her district and is still drawn in the 90th.

• Rep. Alex Joers (D) announced his bid for the 81st AD after representing the 79th AD since 2022. The 81st leans 69.9% Democrat according to the 2022 elections and does not have any incumbents. Rep. Joers was drawn into the 80th AD with Rep. Mike Bare (D). Rep. Bare announced his plans last week to run for the seat after representing it since 2022. Rep. Bare and Rep. Joers were the only Assembly Democrats paired in the new maps.

• Rep. Paul Melotik (R) announced he will run for the new 22nd AD after he was drawn into the district when the new maps were passed. The new 22nd AD is an open seat with no other incumbent lawmakers currently living within its boundaries. According to the results of the 2022 election at the top of the ticket, the 22nd AD is a 59% lean GOP seat.

Non-incumbent election announcements

• Former state Rep. Don Pridemore (R) announced he is running for the 98th AD under the new maps. The district has no incumbent living in its boundaries. He said the new 98th AD is similar to his old district he represented in the Assembly. “I am the same person now as I was then, just a little more mature and experienced,” Mr. Pridemore said. Rep. Adam Neylon (R) represents the 98th right now but has been drawn into the 15th AD under the new maps without being paired with another incumbent. The new 98th has a 71% GOP lean based on the results of the 2022 election at the top of the ticket. Previously, Mr. Pridemore ran for the 13th SD in a 2021 special election and lost in the primary to Sen. John Jagler. He served in the Assembly from 2005-2015 and currently serves on the school boards for Hartford’s K-8 schools and its high school. He also had an unsuccessful bid for state superintendent in 2013 against then-incumbent and now-Governor Tony Evers (D).

• Appleton Ald. Kristin Alfheim (D) announced she would run for the open 18th SD. She has served on the Appleton Common Council since 2021. According to her announcement, Ald. Alfheim will be campaigning on affordable childcare, healthcare, and housing, as well as more funding for public schools and “a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions.” According to the results of the 2022 election at the top of the ticket, the 18th SD is a 55.5% lean Dem seat. Ald. Alfheim previously ran for the 19th SD, but lost in the general election to then-Rep. Rachael Cabral-Guevara (R). In that race, Ald. Alfheim received 45.9% of the vote while at the top of the ticket in the same district, Gov. Evers received just under 50% of the vote in his bid for a second gubernatorial term.

National Dems step up investment in Wisconsin state races

The national Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) announced that it gave an additional $24,000 to Wisconsin’s Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee and State Senate Democratic Committee. The money is to be split between the two campaign committees and follows a previous investment of $24,000 from the national Democratic group in December. In addition to the money for Wisconsin, the DLCC also announced plans to direct nearly $300,000 towards state-level elections in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Minnesota, Michigan, North Carolina, and New Hampshire. “For too long, Wisconsin voters faced unfair, gerrymandered maps in the Legislature but with new maps this year we have new opportunities,” said DLCC President Heather Williams. “We know the stakes of winning these crucial battleground states are high, with abortion, voting rights, fundamental freedoms and more on the line.”

New polling on potential Biden/Trump rematch

Emerson College Polling/The Hill and Bloomberg/Morning Consult released polls this week tracking the presidential race in Wisconsin. Below are the results for each poll.

Emerson College Polling/The Hill

• A new Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey found a potential 2024 rematch between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden in Wisconsin is within the margin of error. The survey has Donald Trump backed by 45% of registered voters while Pres. Biden has the support of 42%. With third party candidates offered as an option, the break down was 41% Trump, 37% Pres. Biden, and 7% Robert Kennedy Jr., with 1% each going to Cornel West and Jill Stein.

• The poll also reported U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D) leading GOP candidate Eric Hovde 46% to 39%.

• The poll surveyed 1,000 registered voters Feb. 20-24. The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points. The poll was conducted using autodial calls to landlines, text to web, a consumer list of emails and an online panel of voters and was weighted by gender, race, age, party affiliation and region based on 2024 registration modeling.

• FiveThirtyEight rates Emerson College Polling/The Hill 2.9 stars out of 3 stars.

Bloomberg/Morning Consult

• A poll of registered voters in Wisconsin found 46% would vote for former President Donald Trump (R) in the November 2024 presidential election, while 42% said they would vote for President Joe Biden (D). The Wisconsin report was part of a larger survey of swing state votes.

• The poll surveyed 702 registered voters in Wisconsin between Feb. 12-20. The margin of error is +/- 4 percentage points. The surveys were conducted online and weighted to approximate a target sample of registered voters in the state based on gender, age, race/ethnicity, marital status, home ownership, and 2020 presidential vote.

• FiveThirtyEight rates Morning Consult 1.8 out of 3 stars.

Hovde launches first paid media

U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde launched his first paid media on television statewide. Mr. Hovde’s spokesperson said the video included in his campaign announcement cost seven figures and will run for seven weeks on broadcast and cable in every Wisconsin market besides Duluth. He says in the ad he is running for Senate because “I believe we need to come together and find commonsense solutions to restore America.”

To watch the ad, click here.

Biden’s campaign continues to hire Wisconsin staff

President Joe Biden’s campaign continued growing its Wisconsin team with three new hires. Bethany Sorenson will serve as chief operating officer. She has worked as the state Democratic Party’s Coordinated Operations director and spent five years working for Rep. David Trone in her home state of Maryland. The senior adviser to the campaign in Wisconsin is Shirley Ellis who has worked for U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore for almost 3 decades. She worked as a senior adviser to the state Dem Party in 2022 and to the Democratic National Convention Committee. Brianna Johnson will serve as communications director. She previously worked for Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly since May 2021 as well as serving as a field organizer in Las Vegas for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Administration Updates

Evers takes action on multiple bills

Governor Tony Evers (D) signed several bills into law this week, including a bill that secures $15 million in crisis response resources to support healthcare access. He also vetoed a tax cut package backed by the GOP.

The bills signed by Governor Evers this week include:

• SB 1015, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 97, ensures flexibility for crisis response funding to be used for any hospital services: urgent care, OB-GYN, mental health services, among others. Gov. Evers used his partial veto power to remove restrictions on the bill passed by the legislature that originally mandated the funding only be used for emergency services.
• AB 890, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 98, makes modifications to the current Badger Fund of Funds.
• SB 971, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 100, was signed with line-item vetoes that makes modifications to the early literacy program, most notably removing the July 1, 2028 sunset provision.
• SB 780, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 99, increases the fees for nonresident archer hunting licenses and nonresident crossbow hunting licenses.

The tax cut package vetoed by Governor Evers this week includes:

• AB 1020: an expansion of the second tax bracket to up to $150,000 for married couples filing jointly, $112,500 for single, and head-of-household and $75,000 for married-separate filers.
• AB 1021: an exemption of the first $75,000 of retirement income from taxes for those 65 and older.
• AB 1022: an expansion of the maximum married couple tax credit from $480 to $870.

Gov. Evers said he vetoed the tax cut package because it would have left the “state unable to meet its basic duties to provide adequate funding for programs and services provided by the state, including education, healthcare, child care, public safety, and aid to local governments in the 2025-27 biennium and beyond.” The governor noted he has signed several income tax cuts previously, but that the current GOP proposal failed to balance the important obligations of providing tax relief to working families “without causing devastating cuts to priorities like public schools and public safety down the road.”

GOP Reaction

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R): “Despite repeated opportunities provided by legislative Republicans, Gov. Evers refuses to support tax cuts that directly benefit the middle class, even when using defined parameters on what he deems as middle class. Even more concerning is the governor’s disregard for Wisconsin’s seniors, who stood to gain significant relief from the proposed tax cut. By ignoring their needs and prioritizing political posturing over practical solutions, Gov. Evers is failing to fulfill his promise to return the surplus to Wisconsin’s families and seniors.”

Sec. Carr announces retirement

Governor Tony Evers announced Corrections Secretary Kevin Carr’s retirement, effective March 8th. “Kevin has spent over 40 years working as a public servant, devoting much of his life to keeping our state and our communities safe, and I was incredibly grateful when he decided to join our administration five years ago,” said Gov. Evers. “Kevin was one of the first people I interviewed when I began filling out my cabinet, and it was immediately clear to me Kevin would not only bring a wealth of experience in law enforcement to keeping people safe but that he would do so with an important appreciation for the power of redemption and rehabilitation. I wish Kevin, Judy, and their family all the best in this well-deserved retirement.”

Before becoming one of Gov. Evers’ first cabinet appointments, Sec. Carr was a U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, a position to which he was appointed by former President Barack Obama. Sec. Carr also has 40 years of experience in law enforcement, including 30 years with the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office.

Gov. Evers is expected to announce Sec. Carr’s replacement in the coming weeks.

Evers to veto PFAS bill

Governor Tony Evers (D) announced he will veto a bill, SB 312, to combat PFAS contamination and urged Republicans to pass a version of their proposal that excludes provisions he argues would benefit polluters. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers said their bill provides the needed protections for innocent victims of pollution. Gov. Evers said in a letter to the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) co-chairs that the bills, “lets polluters off the hook for cleaning up their contamination and asks Wisconsinites to foot the bill.” He also submitted a formal request for JFC to use the $125 million allocated in the state budget to address PFAS. The Senate and the Assembly both passed SB 312 but have not sent it to the governor’s desk for action.

State Building Commission approves $370 million in projects

The Wisconsin State Building Commission approved approximately $370 million in key projects across the state. “These projects will not only upgrade and build state-of-the-art facilities across Wisconsin, but they will support our critical state agencies, universities, and technical colleges and stimulate both our local and state economies,” said Gov. Evers in his press release.

Some of the highlighted projects included:

• Construction of the Camp Randall Sports Center Replacement project.
• Construction of a Regional Forensics Science Center on the Northcentral Technical College campus in Wausau.
• Authorization for the implementation of the Construction Manager (CM) alternative delivery method for the renovation and expansion project at the UW-Madison Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratory (WVDL)-Barron County.
• Renovation to the Health Science Laboratory by adding a new laboratory suite and program space at UW-Parkside.
• Authorizing nine facility maintenance and repair projects across various state agencies.

Legislative Updates

Hesselbein at Madison luncheon

Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D) joined a WisPolitics luncheon in Madison where she weighed in on a number of different topics related to state government and politics:

• Legislative Maps: She said she had hoped the state Supreme Court would have created the legislative maps instead of the legislature voting in favor of the governor’s maps. “I think legislators have done it wrong for so long, and I was really hoping that the Supreme Court could take a shot at it and have it in their jurisdiction,” she said. “I was actually pretty excited to see what they would do.” Sen. Hesselbein said she expects to see “quite a few” new members in the Senate Democratic caucus next session as a result of the news maps. Going forward, she said she’d like to see a bipartisan commission placed in charge of drawing legislative lines, such as the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau.

• Rejecting Appointees: She said she is “really disappointed” with Senate Republicans for rejecting several of Governor Evers’ appointees and said if the roles were reversed, Democrats would publicly articulate why they were voting a certain way. “I mean, these people are volunteers on committees, they’re doing a great job,” Sen. Hesselbein said. “They serve the state of Wisconsin, they know what it takes to be on these committees. And unfortunately, the Republican Party is rejecting them time and time again.”

• ROFR: She said she is hopeful the Senate will vote on a bill that would give existing utilities the right of first refusal on transmission line work. “We haven’t seen what the calendar is going to be like, so I’m hoping that they’re going to have a long caucus next week. So I think that’ll become clear is what they can do this session,” she said.

Other topics discussed by Sen. Hesselbein include:

• Abortion rights in Wisconsin
• Biden vs. Trump match up

Watch the event here.

JFC releases funding for UW-System

The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) voted unanimously to grant $31.9 million to the Universities of Wisconsin to aid in more graduates in high-demand fields like nursing and engineering. The funds were included in the budget signed in July but was held when Republicans delayed pay raises for employees. The release of the money was included in the deal Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R) reached with UW leaders to decrease DEI positions. The deal required the Legislature to release the funds by today and also required the Joint Committee on Employment Relations to approve employee raises.

The plan allocates the Madison and Milwaukee campuses nearly $4.9 million each over the two-year period while the other campuses receive $2 million each. The money is intended to produce more graduates in engineering, nursing/health care, business/finance, and computer/data science. Rep. Andraca (D) said the committee’s actions were similar to releasing hostages while Co-chair Mark Born (R) denied that the $31.9 million played a role in layoffs or furloughs. He said the committee set parameters for the money that required UW-System to show how the money would be used for workforce. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported the Universities of Wisconsin expect the $31.9 million investment to produce an additional 9,350 graduates in several high-demand fields over the next five years, including: 2,250 in engineering, 2,390 in nursing/health care, 2,525 in business/finance, and 2,185 in computer/data science.

Impeachment Updates

GOP legislators to appeal court order blocking Wolfe impeachment

Republican lawmakers including Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu and Senate President Chris Kapenga filed notice this week that they intend to appeal a Dane County judge’s ruling preventing them from removing Megan Wolfe as administrator of the state elections commission. The lawmakers will ask the appeals court to decide whether state law compels the elections commission to “appoint a new administrator regardless of whether a vacancy exists.” The latest litigation comes after Dane County Judge Ann Peacock ruled in June that Ms. Wolfe was lawfully holding over in her position as elections administrator despite her term expiring. The judge had been asked by the Attorney General Josh Kaul to issue an order preventing GOP lawmakers from removing Ms. Wolfe from her post after the election commission’s six board members deadlocked on whether to reappoint her to another term and Senate Republicans voted to remove Ms. Wolfe from her post.