(The Center Square) – The public has an answer in one of Wisconsin’s most- watched Congressional races.
State Sen. Mary Felzkowski, R-Tomahawk, announced she will not be running for the congressional seat in the Northwoods.
“I have spent my entire life in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, growing up working on my family’s Christmas tree farm, raising my children, and running a small business. I love the Northwoods, and representing the people of Northern Wisconsin in Madison is a true honor,” she said in a statement. “After months of thought, prayer, and discussions with my husband, I have decided to not seek higher office. This is not the right time for my family, and besides, I love representing my constituents in Madison as a State Senator.”
Felzkowski, who is the Senate president, said she plans to continue in the state legislature.
“There’s a lot of work still to be done in Wisconsin, and I look forward to continuing to fight for a brighter future in our state,” Felzkowski added.
Her decision to stay in the Senate comes as Democrats in Wisconsin look to flip the upper chamber.
Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said on UpFront that the Wisconsin Senate is the most flippable body in the entire country.
“What we’ve been told time and time again by a lot of people is the Senate Democrats are the most flippable chamber that we’re going to have in the entire United States,” Hesselbein said. “Phone calls keep coming, the entire country, in the entire country, people are telling us this is the most hopeful chamber in the entire country,”
Keeping Felzkowski in the Senate means one less senate seat that Republicans would have to fight for.
Felzkowski’s decision now opens the race for congress in the Northwoods.
Current Congressman Tom Tiffany is running for governor, and a number of northern Wisconsin Republicans are expected to jump at the chance to run in the red district.
Republican Jessi Ebben, who ran for western Wisconsin’s congressional seat in 2020, has already jumped into the race.
Republicans are also expecting Michael Alfonso, who is the son-in-law of former Northwoods Congressman Sean Duffy to also enter the race.
