2 Advance In Milwaukee County Executive Race

MILWAUKEE COUNTY, WI — The race to become the next Milwaukee County Executive is now between two Democratic Wisconsin state legislators.

On Tuesday, voters chose State Sen. Chris Larson and State Rep. David Crowley to advance to the April 7 general election. Larson garnered the most votes among four suitors for the position, but not by much. Crowley collected 34 percent of all ballots cast compared with Larson's 37 percent.

“Tonight, Milwaukeeans said - loud and clear - that they want a progressive agenda set and enacted by a leader who listens. They want a leader who will end family homelessness, secure dedicated funding for transit, lower prescription drug costs, protect our parks, and address the racial injustice that plagues our community. They want a leader who is accessible, who will fight for the many not the few, and who won’t continue business as usual but reject the establishment’s status quo," Larson said. “Tonight, Milwaukee County voters once again rejected corporate PAC money stifling our democracy. They are tired of the super rich trying to buy our elections and our democracy for themselves. We’re done with the deck being stacked against us. We’ll keep pushing for our ultimate victory for the people on April seventh.”

Although Larson came out ahead in Tuesday's election, Journal Sentinel columnist Daniel Bice says he might actually be an underdog when it comes to the April 7 general election. That's because a heavy Democratic turnout as a function of the Presidential primary may skew the voter turnout.

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The Candidates

A total of four suitors appeared on Tuesday night's ballot. Crowley and Larson advance to the April 7 general election.

David Crowley, a Wisconsin State Rep. in the state's 17th district, says the top two issues facing the county as a shortage of much-needed funding, and addressing racial inequities.

Chris Larson, a Wisconsin State Senator whose district covers the greater Milwaukee area, says tackling homelessness and state shared revenue are two items that are at the top of his to-do list.

Theodore Lipscomb is the current Milwaukee County Board chair, and says he's been heading up an effort to improve Milwaukee County's finances in order to invest in stronger transit, better parks, and improved social services.

Purnima Nath, founder of non-profit Spindle India as well as strategy and management consultant, says public safety, economic development and fiscal responsibility are her three main goals, with public safety and economic development taking the lead.

Chris Larson

Ending family homelessness will be my top priority as Milwaukee County Executive, and I know we can get it done in my first term with a "housing first" model. On any given night, Milwaukee County could see eighty families in need of emergency shelters and it is three times cheaper to keep a family in their home than to have them in a shelter. If a child doesn't know where they are going to live, there are serious consequences - from health to education. For the full plan, please visit voteforlarson.org/housing.

Another big issue is shared revenue. Milwaukee drives Wisconsin's economy. We have the largest employers, most employees, and most visitors and events - all of which produce the largest share of revenue for the state. Unfortunately, the money raised here doesn't stay here. We send more money out of our county to the state than we get back and worse, we are denied the ability to raise and invest our tax dollars to the programs that we most value. These artificially imposed restrictions on revenue generation lead to budget cuts that threaten public services.

David Crowley

Bringing more resources to Milwaukee County - It's no secret that one of the biggest issues facing Milwaukee County is a lack of resources. Every year we send more and more money to the state, yet the amount we get back continues to decrease.

This is money that we need to carry out the basic services that Milwaukee County is mandated to provide by the state. These services are wanted and needed by the general public, including transportation infrastructure like airports, roads, and freeways; public parks; services for the aged, disabled, and homeless; criminal justice; and many others.

We have to get creative about how we generate more resources at the county level without burdening the middle class. While I fully support the sales tax increase that has been proposed, we have to be realistic about the current situation in the Legislature.

So long as this is only a Milwaukee issue, it is not going to pass. We need to build relationships with counties and municipalities across the state and approach the need for more revenue as a 72 county issue, not just a Milwaukee issue.

Communities all across our state are struggling with the same problems and it's time that we work together to address this issue. We also have to get creative about how we generate more resources at the county level.

When elected, I will establish a county office dedicated solely to seeking out grant funding and other resources that may be available to the county. This office will target state, federal and foundation resources that other places are tapping, but we are currently leaving on the table.

All candidate images courtesy respective campaigns, published with permission.