LEGISLATIVE NOTES 2020 FALL ELECTION PREVIEW BY SCOTT STENGER, STENGER GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
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ll of Wisconsin’s 99 state Assembly seats are up this November, along with 16 of the 33 state Senate seats and all eight congressional seats. The only statewide race in Wisconsin in 2020 is the presidential election, which will once again put Wisconsin in the national spotlight.
Republicans currently hold comfortable majorities in both houses of the Legislature, with a 18-13 advantage in the state Senate (with two vacancies) and a 63-36 advantage in the state Assembly.
two recent resignations created open seats. Tiffany resigned prior to being sworn into Congress and former Democratic Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling resigned her seat for another career opportunity. Add these seats to five other senators who did not run for reelection, and Fitzgerald’s seat, which will open once he is elected to Congress, and the state Senate will have a markedly different look when it reconvenes in January. It will also have new leadership for both parties, as Republicans will elect a leader to replace Fitzgerald and Democrats elected Sen. Janet Bewley as their new leader to replace Shilling. State senators not seeking reelection include:
There are 21 legislators not seeking reelection in 2020. The 33-member state Senate will have at least eight new members next year, while the state Assembly will have at least 13. The most notable legislator not seeking reelection is Democratic state Sen. Fred Risser. He was first elected to the state Assembly in 1957 and has represented the 26th Senate District since 1962. He is the longest-serving state legislator in the history of the United States and, at 93, he is still working in his Capitol office representing his Madison Senate District. In 2020, there will be an increase in primary challenges of incumbents. Six sitting state representatives are facing a primary challenge from their party, while one democratic state senator is facing a primary challenge from a legislative aide from a fellow democratic senator.
CONGRESS After four decades of public service, Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner is not running for reelection. He was the lead author of the Music Licensing Reform Act. His efforts were spurred by the contact of a TLW member in his district regarding the issue of music licensing. He was able to help reform music licensing, saving small business owners licensing fees. We thank Sensenbrenner for his years of public service, and for listening and acting on such an important issue to small businesses across the country. State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald is the favorite to replace Sensenbrenner. Meanwhile, Republican state Sen. Tom Tiffany easily won a special election to fill the vacant 7th Congressional District and will face the same opponent in November. Incumbents in the six other congressional seats will face a general election opponent.
STATE SENATE Republicans hold an 18-13 advantage in the state Senate after www.tlw.org
• Republican Sen. Dave Craig • Democratic Sen. Dave Hansen • Democratic Sen. Mark Miller • Republican Sen. Luther Olsen • Democratic Sen. Fred Risser • Democratic Sen. Jennifer Shilling • Republican Sen. Tom Tiffany
STATE ASSEMBLY Republicans hold a comfortable 63-36 majority. There are 13 open seats. In addition to the five TLW members seeking reelection, TLW Board Member Keith Kern is running for the 73rd Assembly District in far northern Wisconsin. All TLW members running include: • Republican Rep. Rob Brooks • Republican Rep. James Edming • Republican Rep. Dan Knodl • Republican Rep. Rob Summerfield • Republican Rep. Rob Swearingen • Republican Keith Kern for the 73rd Assembly District State assembly representatives not seeking reelection include: • Republican Rep. Joan Ballweg • Democratic Rep. David Crowley • Republican Rep. Mary Felzkowski • Democratic Rep. Jason Fields • Democratic Rep. Debra Kolste • Republican Rep. Bob Kulp • Republican Rep. Romaine Quinn • Republican Rep. Mike Rohrkaste • Democratic Rep. Melissa Sargent (running for state Senate) • Republican Rep. Rob Stafsholt (running for state Senate) • Democratic Rep. Amanda Stuck (running for Congress) • Democratic Rep. Chris Taylor • Democratic Rep. JoCasta Zamarripa A full list of candidates can be found at: tinyurl.com/yauvee4p. TLW JULY/AUGUST 2020
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