From WisPolitics … — State law didn’t allow the city of Racine to use a van to facilitate absentee voting during the August 2022 state primary, a judge has ruled. Judge Eugene Gasiorkiewicz in yesterday’s decision also found the places the van stopped during that election inappropriately favored Dem voters.

From WisPolitics … — Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says the medical marijuana bill being unveiled by Republicans will “probably be the most restrictive version in the entire country.” Lawmakers are set to hold a number of regional news conferences today to unveil the details. Those are planned for South Milwaukee,

Political Stock Report –A collection of insider opinion– (Jan. 1 – 5, 2024) Rising Pedro Colón: The former Dem lawmaker snagged an appointment to the Milwaukee-based 1st District Court of Appeals last year. Now, he’s poised to get a full six-year term without so much as token opposition on the

From WisPolitics … — Gov. Tony Evers said “hell yes” Senate Republicans have made it more difficult to find a new DNR secretary after a series of his appointments have been rejected. Evers told WisPolitics in an interview this week that he hasn’t yet offered the job to anyone since

From WisPolitics … — Wisconsin’s state and local tax burden in fiscal year 2022-23 rose slightly to 10% from the previous fiscal year’s historic low of 9.96%, according to a Wisconsin Policy Forum report.  Overall, state and local tax collections rose 2.5% to $36.2 billion from $35.4 billion in 2021-22.

From WisPolitics … — Appeals Court judges Pedro Colón and JoAnne Kloppenburg are unopposed for six-year terms. Dem Gov. Tony Evers last year appointed Colón to the Milwaukee-based 1st District after he served on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court. No one else filed nomination papers to run for the seat

From WisPolitics … — The Presidential Preference Selection Committee meets today to set Wisconsin’s primary ballot for the Dem and GOP presidential races. The committee has sole discretion to determine which candidates will be included on the April 2 primary ballot for the parties that eclipsed 10% of the vote

From WisPolitics … — The Republican Accountability Project says it’s launching a six-figure ad campaign in Wisconsin and other states that says Donald Trump is running for president as a “wannabe dictator.” The group says the 60-second spot will air nationally on CNN and MSNBC as well as in Georgia,

From WisPolitics … — Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says GOP lawmakers early next year will OK an audit of DEI practices in state government, highlighting his next target after curtailing positions at UW. The Rochester Republican told WisPolitics in a year-end interview that GOP lawmakers in early 2025 will then

From WisPolitics … — President Joe Biden will visit the Milwaukee Black Chamber of Commerce today to tout his economic policies and announce new investments in Milwaukee and other communities around the country, the White House says. The president will be joined by the founder and owner of Hero Plumbing,

From WisPolitics … — The White House announced this morning Vice President Kamala Harris’ “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour will kick off in Wisconsin on Jan. 22, the 51st anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade. The White House didn’t release details on the stop. The visit

From WisPolitics … — Andrew Hitt, the former chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin and one of the so-called “fake electors,” says he was “tricked” by Trump campaign officials as part of a larger scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election. He’s now cooperating with federal prosecutors

From WisPolitics … — Federal officials have approved Wisconsin’s plan to use $140 million in ARPA funding for two grant programs aimed at improving digital connections, state officials announced. In a release yesterday, Gov. Tony Evers said the state’s plan for the Capital Projects Fund dollars was greenlit by the

From WisPolitics … — Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is calling a reversal by the UW Board of Regents to approve a deal he struck with university leaders “just the first step” in eliminating “cancerous DEI practices” on campuses. Meanwhile, Rep. Dora Drake, chair of the Black Legislative Caucus, knocked the

From WisPolitics … — The Universities of Wisconsin regents will again vote on a deal leaders struck with Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, only this time with the support of a key board member. Board Vice President Amy Blumenfeld Bogost, who voted against the package as it failed 9-8 on Saturday,

From WisPolitics … — Wisconsin school districts will levy $297.8 million more in property taxes on the bills now being sent to homeowners compared to last year, according to a nonpartisan report. The increase in gross levies of 5.4% is the largest since 2009 and will increase gross K-12 property

From WisPolitics … — Gov. Tony Evers is calling for talks to continue on a deal that would pave the way for state investments in the Universities of Wisconsin after the Board of Regents rejected curtailing DEI positions in exchange for a series of financial priorities. But Assembly Speaker Robin

From WisPolitics … — Foxconn qualified for $6.3 million in tax credits in 2022 for meeting job creation and capital investment targets outlined in the contract between the company and WEDC, according to documents provided to WisPolitics.  This marks the third year in a row the company has qualified for

From WisPolitics … — Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer is getting used to recruiting candidates for an upcoming election without being able to tell them what their districts might look like. But the big difference this cycle is the Racine Dem has more time to recruit. “The difference for me

From WisPolitics … — Gov. Tony Evers and Dem AG Josh Kaul are hailing a Dane County judge’s ruling that an 1849 Wisconsin law doesn’t ban consensual abortions. Meanwhile, anti-abortion advocates called for the ruling to be promptly appealed. Despite her ruling on the 1849 law, Judge Diane Schlipper declined