Republican William Penterman won the 37th Assembly District special election over Dem Pete Adams and independent Stephen Ratzlaff Jr., according to a WisPolitics.com tally of unofficial results.
Penterman, a former aide to Rep. Ron Tusler, R-Harrison, sailed to a win with 54.1 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results posted at county clerks’ websites.
Adams, a former Columbus alderman, finished with 44.3 percent of the vote, while Ratzlaff was at 1.6 percent.
Penterman, in a statement on his campaign Facebook page, said he wants to get to work right away.
“The results of today’s election are in, and it is clear that my friends and neighbors in the 37th Assembly District have chosen me to be their next representative in Madison,” he said. “This is a job I will not take lightly, for the task of defending liberty never ends.”
Penterman, the youngest candidate in the race at 25, outraised Adams more than 3-to-1 in the pre-election period. He also continued to outraise Adams for late contributions, and the conservative Americans for Prosperity-Wisconsin spent $22,563 backing the GOP candidate through canvassing, mail and online ads. He lives in Columbia and serves in the U.S. Army Reserve.
The seat opened up after Republican John Jagler won a special election in April for a state Senate seat.
The Assembly district, which stretches across Dane, Jefferson, Dodge and Columbia counties, has a strong GOP bent. Jagler won the seat with 56.1 percent of the vote in November over Dem Abigail Lowery (40.9%) and Ratzlaff (3%).
Meanwhile, former President Trump won 54.4 percent of the vote in the district, while Joe Biden took 43.8 percent.