By Grace Carlson and Megan Woolard

Bridget Maniaci, a small business owner and self-described progressive Democrat, is looking to unseat Rep. Ryan Clancy, D-Milwaukee, in his bid for another term in his Milwaukee Assembly seat.

The two candidates for the 19th Assembly District, which includes downtown Milwaukee, the UW-Milwaukee campus and the Historic Third Ward, support further funding of public education, expanding state protections for transgender people, and implementing more tenant protections. 

But they differ on what other policy solutions to prioritize. Clancy wants to repeal Act 12, a local government funding and tax reform law that changed the state shared revenue formula, and legalize cannabis, while Maniaci is focused on steps to bolster Milwaukee’s economy and invest in transportation infrastructure.

Clancy, 49, was the first socialist since 1956 elected to public office in Milwaukee when he was voted into the Milwaukee County Board in 2020. He currently owns an entertainment complex and previously worked as a substitute teacher.

He’s focused his reelection campaign on informing voters about what he’s already done in public office, including co-authoring legislation requiring further background checks for gun purchases and co-sponsoring legislation to create a public option health plan. Neither was passed into law.

Maniaici, 42, previously served two terms as a Madison alderperson and worked for former state Rep. Tom Hebl, D-Sun Prairie. She currently owns a small home goods and gift shop business on Milwaukee’s east side.

She is proposing a state-owned public bank, expanding low-interest loans within the Wisconsin’s State Small Business Credit Initiative and implementing a publicly funded program for well water remediation.

Both candidates agree the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program should be renewed, with Clancy blaming a “Republican total failure to compromise” for letting the fund expire. 

The 19th AD is included in a 2026 city zoning ordinance banning data center development following community outrage at a proposal of a downtown Milwaukee data center in the nearby 11th AD.

The two Democratic candidates support a larger statewide moratorium, with Clancy calling it a short-term solution to help with rising utility costs.

Clancy said one solution to help lower utility rates could be a moratorium on data centers or AI-scaled data centers, “because we know that if AI data centers are built and there aren’t very tight restrictions on those, they’ll see residential rates go up.”

Maniaci holds a similar position on data center development and highlights the role of the PSC in protecting Wisconsinites against rising rates.

“I think a moratorium, until there is a state set of ground rules, is really the best fiscal, environmental, and civic course of action until we can establish what we actually want out of this situation,” Maniaci said.