The Capitol Report

Two reports from the University of Wisconsin highlight the good and potential bad of the state’s currently roaring economy.

The state Republican party endorsement process in Wisconsin is drawing criticism from some of its candidates as just two GOP governor and four lieutenant governor hopefuls have so far met campaign finance thresholds needed to qualify for the party’s endorsement.

Gordon Hintz and Dianne Hesselbein were the first dominoes to fall. Now, Wisconsin Assembly Democrats will have an entirely new leadership team than the one they had just four months ago — an unheard turnover in session for a caucus.

The U.S. Supreme Court looks to have the last word on whether Evers’ maps are in place for the 2022 elections. But unless GOP lawmakers are successful in their appeals to the nation’s highest court, the landscape for the Assembly and Senate maps are a lot different from what Republicans put in place 11 years ago.

The state Supreme Court has delivered a win for Wisconsin Democrats in picking Gov. Tony Evers’ congressional and legislative boundaries.

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers isn’t asking for the measures and very well may veto them if they make it to his desk. But Republicans in the Legislature are still working on a host of workforce measures, which aim to ease the labor shortage by limiting access to government programs.

As the populations at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake have declined, Wisconsin counties are seeking alternatives to sending youths to the troubled juvenile prisons as their per-inmate costs to house them there have more than tripled.

The rash of legislative retirements in Wisconsin is now running through leadership.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kevin Nicholson told WisPolitics.com he is running against a GOP “machine” that failed to do more on school choice, election security and critical race theory when it had a chance. He lumped rival Rebecca Kleefisch in with a “decaying” party establishment.

Republican legislative campaign committees significantly outraised their Democratic counterparts over the last half of 2021 and begin the election year with a big cash advantage, according to Wisconsin fundraising reports reviewed by WisPolitics.com.