Lt. Governor Candidates to Speak in Viroqua

The two leading Democratic candidates to be Wisconsin’s next Lieutenant Governor — Mandela Barnes and Kurt Kober — will appear jointly in Viroqua on Sunday, June 17.

“We’re looking forward to a spirited discussion as both Democratic candidates for Lieutenant Governor take questions from members of the public together,” said Scott Champion, chair of the Vernon County Democratic Party. “This is a rare opportunity to hear candidates debate their visions for Wisconsin’s future and meet our future leaders in a small-group setting.”

Barnes and Kober will appear at the June General Membership meeting of the Vernon Democrats. The meeting will be at 5 p.m. on Sunday, June 17, at the group’s headquarters in the Historic Fortney Hotel, 100 N. Main Street.

After Barnes and Kober speak, Party members will plan to sustain the #BlueWave into November's general election, including volunteer opportunities, fundraising plans and election strategy.

Local Control: Restore Community-Based Decision Making!

For a long time, Wisconsin has valued and upheld the role of local government in safeguarding the interests of its citizens. However – since the 2010 election of Governor Scott Walker and a Republican-controlled Legislature – the state has substantially tipped the scales by stripping local officials and governments of decision-making authority.

LEARN HOW the ongoing assault on local government authority is eroding balance of power in Wisconsin: Click here to read our new paper, “Restore Local Control & Community-Based Decision Making."

Protect Wisconsin water from high-capacity wells!

Wisconsin waters – and indeed, all our natural resources – are the shared legacy of us all. They are  literally being sold out from under our feet.

Our groundwater needs defending from rollback of regulatory oversights. Visit our Issues page to access our white paper on high capacity wells, and our other papers on Wisconsin's roads crisis and redistricting reform.

Learn about Gerrymandering!

Would you like to learn more about the Wisconsin gerrymandering case currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court? Did you attend our "Tacos and Gerrymandering" event on Nov. 9 and want to read the handouts from Prof. Stephen Schulhofer, who wrote a "friend of the court" brief in the case?

Follow these links:

• Vernon Co. Democratic Party issue paper on redistricting
• Gill v. Whitford "friend of the court brief" to the U.S. Supreme Court
• League of Women Voters "friend of the court brief" co-authored by Prof. Schulhofer
• Op-ed piece by Andrea Kaminski, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, supporting the "Iowa Model" for drawing nonpartisan electoral maps 

Wisconsin road are in crisis!

While state policymakers have spent the past decade battling over transportation spending, borrowing and taxes, Wisconsin roads continue to age and decline.

A recent Federal Highway Administration audit found that only 32.2 percent of Wisconsin highways are in good condition, far less than any other Midwestern state. In a report by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Wisconsin ranks third worst in the nation for having 71 percent of its roads rated in poor/mediocre condition.

READ OUR NEW ISSUE PAPER to understand how our roads became so awful, the direct impact in Vernon County, and how Gov. Scott Walker and lawmakers in Madison can begin to solve the problem!