Politics & Government

Democratic-Majority Senate Makes Committee Appointments, Lehman on Joint Finance

Sen. John Lehman's win in the recall election in the 21st District means Democrats have the majority in the Senate and can make key committee appointments friendly to their side of the aisle.

Only about 24 hours after Sen. John Lehman was sworn in, Democratic Majority Leader Sen. Mark Miller announced committee appointments.

Lehman's win in the recall election of the 21st District against Republican Van Wanggaard gives the Democrats control of the state Senate with a 17-16 majority.

According to a release from Miller's office, Lehman will serve as the chair of the Senate Committee on Education and Corrections; vice-chair of the Senate Committee on Children and Families, Disability Rights and Housing Sustainability; and will be a member of the Joint Committee on Finance.

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Lehman's office released a statement about the appointments, saying he's ready to get to work.

I am honored by Majority Leader Mark Miller’s decision to appoint me as the Chair of the Education and Corrections Committee. There is no time to wait for fixing the 1.6 billion dollar cuts to our children’s schools and ensuring public safety for our communities.

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As Vice-chair of the Senate Committee on Children and Families, Disability Rights and Housing Sustainability I am ready to work with my colleagues to protect Wisconsin’s most vulnerable and preserve opportunities for all citizens in our state.

I am looking forward to working with my fellow Racine County colleagues Representative Cory Mason, Representative Robin Vos and all the other members on Joint Finance to do what is right for our state and do what is necessary to put an end to the partisan bickering.

Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee), who represents residents of Shorewood because of redistricting, will serve as Co-Chair of the Joint Committee on Finance with Rep. Robin Vos (R-Rochester).

Lehman also made reference in his statement to wanting to get to work creating jobs for the people of Racine County, particularly in the City of Racine.

“We have to refocus on creating jobs in Wisconsin. The City of Racine has the highest unemployment in the state and it is about time we get to work," he wrote.

But according to a story from our media partners at FOX 6 News that backs up what , Democrats are calling for a special session on jobs. Assembly Majority Leader Jeff Fitzgerald is dismissing the request as "political theater" and cautioned Democrats to not get too comfortable.

“I am confident we will regain the majority this fall, so we can keep Wisconsin moving forward,” Fitzgerald is quoted as saying.

All 99 Assembly seats and 16 of 33 Senate seats are up for grabs in November, which means what party eventually gets control of the Assembly and the Senate remains, well, up for grabs.


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