1.
Democratic Party of Wisconsin
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The Democratic Party of Wisconsin is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Wisconsin. It is currently headed by party chair Martha Laning. The Democratic Party dominated politics until the late 1850s, followed by the newly founded Republican Party of Wisconsin, the Republican Party held sway for almost 100 years. Jacksonian democracy was strong in Wisconsin in the days, until 1856 all territorial and state governors were Democrats. In 1854, however, a coalition of Whigs, Antislavery Democrats, from that point on, Republicans quickly gained control of most elected offices, from 1856 to 1959 there were only three Democratic governors. This period of time would last almost one hundred years, until the Democratic party would gain a foothold within the state. In the late 19th century, the Republican Party was primarily concerned with the interests of railroads, the lumber industry. In the last decade of the 19th century, the Republican Partys progressive base, the election of La Follette as governor in 1900 was the cornerstone of this movement. Democrats were virtually dormant in the state during this time, the Republicans led by La Follette employed many progressive policies within in the state of Wisconsin. These policies during the century were rather influential with the masses. The Republicans tight control of Wisconsin politics lasted until the 1950s and these changes were consistent with the new social policies being called for by the national Democratic Party. The Democrats won their first major victory when William Proxmire was elected in the late 1950s, the dawn of the 21st century has been a mixed one when it comes to control of state politics. The Democrats and Republicans in Wisconsin have both had multiple occasions of controlling either the State Assembly or the State Senate, the first decade of the twenty-first century has been an even balance between the parties fight for control of Wisconsin. The Democrats have not been in control of the governors office, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin tends to be closely aligned with many of the ideas/ideologies of the national Democratic Party in the United States. While the national Democratic Party has a scope of views. The Wisconsin Democratic Partys ideologies can be classified as liberal, progressive, many of these views can be characterized by what the party is calling for relating to the partys social ideals and economic ideals. This can encompass topics such as education, healthcare, foreign policy, environmental issues, many of these issues are addressed when the Party has their convention and they develop and vote on a party platform. A group of State Senators fled the state to halt the vote on the bill by denying a quorum, the repair bill ultimately passed after a series of appeals and judicial rulings
2.
Fred Risser
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Fred A. Risser is a Democratic member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 26th District since 1962. His district includes most of the west side and central neighborhoods of Madison and he previously served in the Wisconsin Assembly from 1957 to 1962. Risser has never lost an election and is the state legislator in American political history. Risser was born in Madison on May 5,1927, into one of the most prolific families in Wisconsin political history, rissers father, grandfather, and great-grandfather served at various times as Wisconsin legislators representing part or all of Dane County, although none as Democrats. He served in the United States Navy during World War II, Risser was first elected to the Wisconsin Assembly in 1956, succeeding fellow Democrat Ivan A. Nestingen. He was elected to the state Senate in a 1962 special election triggered by the appointment of Horace W. Wilkie to the Wisconsin Supreme Court and he was elected to a full term in 1964 and has been reelected every four years since. In his 2004 electoral victory, he received more than 80% of the vote, facing opposition only from a Green Party candidate, in the 2007–08 session of the Wisconsin State Senate, Risser was elected as President of the Senate. He held this position on several prior occasions and he also has been President Pro Tempore, Minority Leader and Assistant Minority Leader in the State Senate. In 2008 and 2012 he was re-elected without opposition, during the protests in Wisconsin, Risser, along with the 13 other Democratic State Senators, left the state to deny the State Senate a quorum on Governor Scott Walkers Budget Repair legislation. Risser is married to Nancy Risser, a retired Spanish teacher and he has three children and four grandchildren. Rissers family a part of history, The Capital Times
3.
Julie Lassa
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Julie M. Lassa was a Democratic Party member of the Wisconsin State Senate, who represented the 24th District from April 2003 to January 2017. She was a member of the Wisconsin Assembly for the 71st District from 1998 through 2003. Born in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, Lassa graduated from Stevens Point Area Senior High School and graduated with a B. S. in political science and she served as the executive director of the Plover Area Business Association and as the chair of the Portage County Democratic Party. Lassa was elected as a member of the Dewey Town Board from 1993 to 1994, Lassa served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1998 through 2003. She successfully ran in 2003 for the Wisconsin State Senate and served there until 2017, Lassa ran against Republican nominee Sean Duffy for Wisconsins 7th congressional district, held by retiring Dave Obey. She was endorsed by Mike Tate, the Chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, Duffy defeated Lassa with a strong showing in the November 2010 general election. Lassa resides in Stevens Point, Wisconsin with her husband John Moe, City Clerk for the City of Stevens Point, and their three children, Taylor, Madison, and Lily
4.
Kathleen Vinehout
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Kathleen Vinehout is a Democratic member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 31st district since 2007. She was a candidate for Governor of Wisconsin in the election against Scott Walker. Vinehouts family farm in Alma is certified organic and produces hay and she has been mentioned as a possible candidate for Governor in the 2018 election. Vinehout was born on June 16,1958 in Albany, New York and grew up in Aurora and her father was a laborer and her mother a registered nurse, and both served in the United States Air Force. She graduated from Aurora Central Catholic High School in 1976 and she also received an associate degree in agriculture from the Lincoln Land Community College in 1992. Vinehout directed both the graduate and undergraduate programs in health administration at the University of Illinois at Springfield and she was a member of the faculty and teaching in the Health Services Administration and Women’s Studies Programs. Her academic work focused on health policy, the history of health care reform. After working in academia, Vinehout worked as the operator of the familys fifty-cow dairy farm. The farm had a rolling herd average of 21,000 pounds of milk, Vinehout was president of the Dairy Herd Improvement Association in Buffalo County, Wisconsin for several years and represented the district at statewide meetings. She also assisted the Wisconsin Farmers Union in agriculture and dairy policy and she served on the Buffalo County Agricultural Fair Association Board and the Buffalo County Farm Bureau Board. Vinehout was formerly a member of the Wisconsin Holstein Association and she, Vinehout was elected to the Wisconsin Senate in 2006, defeating Republican Incumbent Ron Brown. In her first term, Vinehout chaired the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Higher Education, Vinehout was the chair of the Democratic Party of Buffalo County and served on the Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission and the Alma Chamber of Commerce. In 2005, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin awarded her with the Eleanor Roosevelt Award for her work in grassroots organizing, on November 2,2010, Vinehout was reelected to the Wisconsin Senate beating Ed Thompson. On November 9,2010, with only 352 votes separating the two candidates, Thompson asked for a recount, on November 19,2010, Thompson conceded the election to Vinehout. She returned to the State of Wisconsin on March 12,2011, Vinehout was a candidate in the Democratic Primary during the 2012 Wisconsin Gubernatorial Recall Election. She garnered four percent of the vote, coming in third, in January 2014, Senator Vinehout announced she would not run for Governor of Wisconsin because of injuries she received in a car accident in Racine County, Wisconsin in December 2013. In addition to her career, Vinehout owns a farm with her husband, Doug. Her family operates a 223-acre organic farm near Alma, Wisconsin, Vinehout is an active member of Saint Lawrence Catholic Church
