Wisconsin Election Results: Milwaukee County Executive

MILWAUKEE, WI — David Crowley won the Milwaukee County Executive election in a razor-thin race against challenger Chris Larson, according to results released by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Crowley won just 1,039 more votes than Larson, about half of one percent of the total vote.

Amid the coronavirus public health emergency, voters across Wisconsin took to the polls April 7 for the presidential primary and statewide general election.

In Milwaukee County, voters chose between two candidates for Milwaukee County Executive, after incumbent Chris Abele announced he was not running for re-election following nine years in office.

Milwaukee's top executive came down to two candidates who currently serve in the state legislature.

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

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

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Here are their platforms in their own words:

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.