Brown County

Jonathon Hansen is running to replace the retiring Democratic incumbent, Dave Hansen. He currently serves as a DePere Alderman. Jonathon comes from a blue-collar family and worked at grocery stores and Walmart before he was a teacher. He’ll invest in technical college and job training. He says we need to hold polluters to account, especially when it comes to toxic, cancer-causing chemicals in our water. Hansen will also fight for better, more affordable health care for Wisconsinites including expanding BadgerCare and guaranteeing insurers can’t drop coverage when people get sick. His opponent, Eric Wimberger. Wimberger is an opponent of reproductive choice and favors taxpayer funded private school vouchers. He has been endorsed and partially funded by the NRA in his previous run for the Senate. Jonathon Hansen is the progressive candidate in this race.

Small business owner Kim Delorit Jenson is running for Assembly to represent the citizens of District 1, rather than special interests and large corporations. Although she describes herself as "closer to a Reagan than a Sanders," the first-time candidate has some progressive positions. She is calling for a public option to address healthcare accessibility and affordability, nonpartisan redistricting, and environmental protection. One of the main differences that Delorit Jensen cites between herself and her opponent is her support for small organic farms, as compared to Kitchens' support of large industrial farms. Delorit Jensen is the more progressive choice.

Mark Kiley is running to unseat Assemblyman Shae Sortwell. Although Kiley has not taken as many explicit or specific stances as some other candidates, he is concerned about groundwater, supports renewable energy, intends to fully fund public education, and believes infrastructure investments are needed. Sortwell is extremely conservative and has flouted expert opinions on the coronavirus. His radical ideology extends to his professional comportment. In one notable incident, Sortwell displayed his gun to a Democratic legislative aide in another legislator's office, where guns were not permitted. Kiley is the more progressive choice.

Kathy Hinkfuss is a former nurse, healthcare executive, and nonprofit leader. She believes in fair nonpartisan maps, a science based approach to the coronavirus pandemic, and affordable healthcare. Her opponent, Republican incumbent David Steffen supports Act 10 and the restrictions on public sector collective bargaining. He also favored the corporate giveaway to Foxconn that so far has yielded few jobs for Wisconsinites. Hinkfuss is the more progressive choice

Dr. Kristin Lyerly is running as a Democrat in the 88th district. As a physician, she believes that the COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated the need for change on issues such as healthcare and showcased the importance of responsible leadership. Lyerly favors BadgerCare expansion, tax fairness to benefit small business as opposed to large corporations, changing the school funding formula, and common sense gun reform, among other relatively progressive policies. Her opponent, incumbent Republican John Macco has voted against initiatives to address many of these issues in the state Assembly. Lyerly is the more progressive choice in this race.

Karl Jaeger's message centers on prioritizing people over big business. For him, that means working to expand Medicaid, cleaning up contaminated waterways, accepting federal Medicaid expansion, repealing Act 10 limits on employee workplace rights, moving towards coal-free energy, and enacting non-partisan redistricting. His opponent, Republican Assemblyman John Nygren is a conservative who has turned in the opposite direction as Jaeger on many of these issues, including taking the side of corporate special interests and not voting for his own bill related to the clean-up of toxic, cancer-causing chemicals in the local water supply. Jaeger is the more progressive choice in this race.

Kristina Shelton is a believer in public education, calling for the state to return to two-thirds funding for public schools, fund special education, and end the taxpayer funded private school voucher program. Shelton is also a supporter of BadgerCare expansion, confronting climate change, and affordable housing investments. Her opponent, Republican Drew Kirsteatter is anti-choice and against proven measures that help slow the spread of coronavirus, like the mask mandate. Shelton is the more progressive choice.