Come August 13, voters in State Assembly District 68 will have a choice of two candidates to send on to the November ballot and potentially Madison for the GOP. An open primary state, Wisconsin does not require that one register with a particular party in order to vote.
For readership voting purposes, the new District 68 as of this spring is all that area north of 130th Avenue/County Line, including Colburn, Taft, and Roosevelt. So who are the GOP candidates?
Starting off the candidates is Rob Summerfield of Bloomer. Currently State Assembly Representative for District 67, Summerfield announced candidacy for District 68 after new assembly maps this spring drew him out of District 67 and into District 68, the new maps removing District 81 representative James Edming from his district. Edming has endorsed Summerfield.
“While it was incredibly difficult to decide not to seek re-election to the State Assembly, I know that my constituents who now reside in the new 68th Assembly District will be represented well by Rob,” Edming said. “Together he and I fought successfully to stop the extreme liberal agenda pushed by Governor Evers and Democrats in Madison. We also made sure to get common sense reforms passed to help our families, businesses, and communities. I encourage everyone who has supported me over the years to join me in supporting Rob this fall and send a proven conservative back to Madison.”
A former small business owner, Summerfield counts among his accomplishments the authoring of legislation that reallocated 15 million dollars to his area for emergency services in response to hospital closures as well as helping to alleviate the workforce shortage in the healthcare system by allowing more CNA’s to be hired as part-time employees. He also cites increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the state’s broadband grant program, successfully pushing to increase the reimbursement rate for patients who are in need of ventilator care, and fighting the fraud and abuse of taxpayer funded programs among his accomplishments, as well as passing billions in tax relief and forcing a reduction in divisive DEI programming in the UW-System.
Challenging Summerfield for the GOP ballot place this November is Cliff Taylor of Ladysmith. A decorated Navy veteran and successful businessman, Taylor is a four-decade resident of Ladysmith and founder of Colonial Nursery, a Ladysmith area nursery and landscaping business. Married to Wife Kathy, Taylor is also founder of Heart of the North Brewing Company, a microbrewery and community hub near the nursery greenhouses.
Alongside his business career, Taylor has been active in local governments, serving several terms on the Rusk County Board of Supervisors, advocating for fewer regulations and strong property rights and challenging budget decisions by the board. He professes himself to be a “constitutional conservative” and is committed to addressing both state and national issues with the same energy he has brought to the local area, pledging to be an independent voice in the state legislature who prioritizes the needs and rights of his constituents.
Readers can find more on Taylor at clifftaylorforwi.com, while more on Summerfield is available at https://www.robsummerfield4assembly.org
Also registered as a candidate in State Assembly District 68 this fall but without a primary challenger is Richard Pulcher of Lublin (Democrat). More on Pulcher is available at his campaign website, www.richardpulcher.com.
The Stanley Republican will furnish more information on each of the candidates as the fall election approaches.