(The Center Square) – Wisconsin state Rep. Jessie Rodriguez, R-Oak Creek, announced that she would not run for reelection while Rep. Bob Donovan, R-Greenfield, said that he will be running to retain his seat.
Rodriguez said that she was retiring after first joining the state Assembly in 2013 in a special election. She represented the 21st district.
“Throughout my time in office, I have tried to keep family first,” Rodriguez said. “But the truth is, it is difficult to do this job well without it affecting the people who care about you most. My family has given me patience, encouragement, and support through long days, busy weeks, and many moments when this work required more of me than they deserved to lose.”
Dylan Pfaffenbach, who lives in Oak Creek, announced Friday that he would be running for the 21st District seat.
Pfaffenbach said he will prioritize increasing health-care price transparency, improving Wisconsin’s education system and securing our neighborhood’s safety for our families along with affordability.
“I’d like to thank Rep. Jessie Rodriguez for her more than a decade of service to the community. Her leadership in the Assembly will be sorely missed,” Pfaffenbach said in a statement. “I’m running because families across our community are being squeezed by rising every-day costs that make life more difficult. Rising utility rates, the cost of homeownership, and the never-ending property tax hikes are preventing us from reaching our full potential. Wisconsin needs fresh leadership that not only listens to residents but offers new and practical solutions.”
Donovan has been an advocate for eliminating emissions testing in Wisconsin in the seven-county non attainment zone.
“Milwaukee County needs a strong advocate in Madison who delivers real results on the issues that matter most, including public safety and common-sense relief for hardworking families,” Donovan said in a statement announcing his reelection campaign. “Over the past session, I have fought tirelessly to protect our communities by securing critical resources for Milwaukee County’s public safety, passing tough new laws to tow reckless drivers off our streets, and pushing for an end to the outdated and burdensome vehicle emissions testing program that has taxed southeast Wisconsin drivers for far too long.”
WisDems Chair Devin Remiker pointed to election results in Michigan on Tuesday as an indication why Rodriguez became the 15th legislative Republican to announce that he or she would not run for reelection.
“Rodriguez is joining 14 of her Republican colleagues in retirement, seeing the writing on the wall following Chris Taylor’s historic Supreme Court victory, Republican leadership abandoning ship, and Democrats continuing to overperform across the country,” Remiker said in a statement. “They know that they can’t outrun the ever-worsening cost crisis that Donald Trump and Republicans are driving with their disastrous agenda. To those like Bob Donovan and Shannon Zimmerman who have decided to run again, you have 23 days to retire or you will be fired by the voters in November. Your leaders and colleagues know what is coming and it is not the cavalry; it is only defeat.”
