MADISON, Wis. — For the past decade, Wisconsin’s Republicans have been able to hide from voters and escape true accountability due to gerrymandered maps. Now, thanks to new, fair legislative maps, casual observers would assume Wisconsin Republicans are being forced to take responsibility for their records and finally face their constituents. However, Republicans like Representatives Loren Oldenburg, Todd Novak, and Shannon Zimmerman are nowhere to be found.
Republican candidates from Dodgeville to River Falls and Fond du Lac have rejected attending legislative forums or answering interview requests, and several have even declined to participate in debating their Democratic opponent.
Wisconsinites deserve to be heard and fought for—and Wisconsin Democrats will do just that. Democrats like Elizabeth Grabe, Tara Johnson and Alison Page will fight to expand affordable heath care, restore access to reproductive freedom, and lower costs for families—and they won’t hide their beliefs away.
See what Wisconsinites are reading about flaky Republicans below:
Isthmus on Rep. Todd Novak: “Elizabeth Grabe, a Democrat running for one of Wisconsin’s newly competitive state Assembly seats, sat on a stage at Mount Horeb’s Brix Cider for about 45 minutes answering questions during a candidate forum hosted by the Main Street Alliance, a group that champions small business owners. The chair next to her sat empty, save for a cup and bouquet of flowers. […] Rep. Todd Novak, the five-term Republican incumbent representing Assembly District 51, was invited to the Sept. 16 forum but did not attend. Shawn Phetteplace, campaigns director for Main Street Alliance, says his group tried its best to accommodate Novak and offered a range of dates and times. An aide to Novak eventually told Phetteplace that Novak was ‘unavailable.’”
News8000 on Rep. Loren Oldenburg: “Viroqua farmers and small business owners were invited to discuss small business and family farm issues at a state legislative roundtable on Monday. 96th Assembly District Candidate Tara Johnson was in attendance to give her stances on economic policy and the future of farming in the state. Representative Loren Oldenburg was invited but did not attend.”
WIZM on Rep. Loren Oldenburg, Ryan Huebsch, and Cedric Schnitzler: “Only one local debate will be happening when it comes to Wisconsin elections. On Oct 16, Wisconsin state Sen. Brad Pfaff (D-Onalaska) will debate Republican challenger Stacey Klein for District 32, and will broadcast on WIZM. Republicans in all three La Crosse-area state Assembly districts have declined to debate, citing ‘scheduling conflicts.’ Republican state Rep. Loren Oldenburg (Viroqua) of the 96th District, along with his GOP candidates, Ryan Huebsch (Onalaska – 94th District) and Cedric Schnitzler (La Crosse – 95th District), have all declined to debate their Democratic opponents. Democratic incumbents Jill Billings (95th) and Steve Doyle (94th), plus candidate Tara Johnson (96th) had all agreed to participate.”
Ripon Commonwealth Press on Rep. Glenn Grothman and Rep. Alex Dallman: “For those of you keeping score at home, the Ripon League of Women Voters now is 0-2 when it comes to getting local Republicans to answer policy questions at its election forums. Ripon’s congressman Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Glenbeulah, didn’t even have the courtesy to even answer the League’s invitation. At least Ripon’s state Assembly representative and former Grothman staffer state Rep. Alex Dallman, R-Green Lake, responded to an emailed invitation to attend a forum scheduled for last week Wednesday at Ripon City Hall. That’s the good news. The bad news is that he said no.”
Wisconsin Watch on Rep. Shannon Zimmerman: “Wisconsin Watch is previewing legislative races in toss-up districts ahead of the Nov. 5 election by focusing on key issues for voters and what candidates say they will do to address them. Rural health care access, affordable child care and public education are key issues for western Wisconsin voters in the toss-up 30th Assembly District where Democratic candidate Alison Page will seek to unseat incumbent Rep. Shannon Zimmerman in November. […] Zimmerman, 52, has represented the district since 2017. He co-chairs the Joint Committee on Information Policy and Technology. He is also part of the powerful Joint Finance Committee, which oversees the state budget. He is the founder of a language translation company and owns a small business. Zimmerman did not respond to Wisconsin Watch’s repeated requests for an interview.”
Wisconsin State Journal on Rep. Mark Born: “LaToya Bates of Mayville is the underdog in this conservative-leaning district long held by Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, who co-leads the Legislature’s budget committee. We’ve endorsed Born in the past. This time, he didn’t respond to our requests for an interview to learn more about his record and priorities.”
Wisconsin State Journal on Jerry Helmer: “Karen DeSanto of Baraboo is the clear choice for this district that includes Portage, Sauk City, Prairie du Sac and Spring Green. She’s led the Boys and Girls Clubs of West Central Wisconsin for a dozen years, giving her “a magnified lens” on the challenges faced by area children and families. She doubled the organization’s sites to four and makes a compelling case for preventing juvenile crime through engagement. She’ll support greater funding for public schools and wants to invigorate UW-Baraboo so it stays open. DeSanto, a Democrat, has deep ties to the district — even performing as a professional clown with the Baraboo circus. Her opponent, Jerry Helmer of Prairie du Sac, doesn’t seem to be running an active campaign and declined to meet with our board.”
Appleton Post-Crescent on Jessica Henderson: “We asked northeastern Wisconsin child care providers, as well as other early learning experts, what the Legislature can do to help with the state’s child care issues. The answers varied, but there were many throughlines. We also posed this question to candidates in contested legislative races across northeastern Wisconsin. […] Assembly District 90 – Jessica Henderson, Republican: Henderson did not respond to interview requests.”
Wisconsin State Journal on Rep. Tony Kurtz: “Julia Henley, a Democrat from Blue River, wants to protect the beauty of the Driftless Area while encouraging rural development in sustainable ways. Her background in construction and design, as well as flood relief, will bring knowledge and ideas to state debates over regulation. Henley faults state leaders for “starving” schools in the district, which includes Wisconsin Dells, Reedsburg and Richland Center. She also faults Republicans who control the Legislature for failing to take federal Medicaid dollars, which she says could help keep more rural hospitals open. Henley favors abortion rights, unlike her opponent, Rep. Tony Kurtz, R-Wonewoc, who didn’t meet with our editorial board.”
Wisconsin Watch on Rep. Bob Donovan: “Wisconsin Watch is previewing legislative races in toss-up districts ahead of the Nov. 5 election by focusing on key issues for voters and what candidates say they will do to address them. Housing and child care affordability, abortion rights and public school funding are key issues in the race for the 61st Assembly District — a toss-up district encompassing portions of southwestern Milwaukee as well as Greendale, Hales Corners and parts of Greenfield. The race is a rematch from 2022, pitting incumbent Rep. Bob Donovan, R-Greenfield, a longtime GOP office-holder in the Milwaukee area, against Democrat LuAnn Bird, a former executive director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin. Donovan won the 2022 contest by just 525 votes. […] Donovan did not respond to interview requests for this story.”
Wisconsin State Journal on William Penterman: “Responses to the Wisconsin State Journal’s candidate questionnaire. The election is Nov. 5. William Penterman, the Republican candidate, did not respond.”
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