Know Before You Vote: Kenosha County Board Candidates

*Note: this blog will be regularly updated as new information about candidates comes to light. Check back regularly.

The KCDP provides our list of endorsed and recommended candidates for the April 2nd election HERE.

There are many reasons the KCDP chooses not to support certain candidates. Often its due to a lack of shared vision or a candidate is poorly prepared for the office for which they are running.

This year, a number of candidates running for the Kenosha County Board and other elected offices hold extremist views or behaved in unethical ways. We feel Kenosha County residents should be informed before casting their votes.

Below are Kenosha County Board candidates that raise concerns. To see KUSD school board candidates that raise concerns, visit HERE.

If you're not sure of your County Board District, you can look find it here to find out which of these candidates will be on your ballot.

For our complete voter guide, including information about the two constitutional amendments that will be on your ballot, visit HERE.

To find your polling place, early voting hours, request an absentee ballot and more visit MyVote.Wi.gov.

Here's what you ought to know before you vote:

County Board Supervisors set the strategic mission and priorities for the County. They establish general policy by which the County is guided in the management of County affairs. They consider and act upon resolutions and ordinances, provide financial oversight and are supposed to build community relationships in support of the mission and priorities. They hold county staff accountable for implementing policy, make laws, and approve the spending priorities in Kenosha County's $138 million budget. The are supposed to engage in cooperative decision making.

Extremist views and people who act unethically don't belong on the Kenosha County board. Know the candidates before you vote:

Terry Rose, District 2

Three decades ago, Terry Rose served as the chair of the Kenosha County Democratic Party.

Rose has been the Supervisor of District 2 for 38 years, many of those years without a challenger.

While Rose has not been a Democratic Party member for years, some felt he was a reasonable voice on the Kenosha County Board, despite providing poor constituent services.

That is no longer true. The members of the KCDP this year voted to endorse his opponent, Dr. Steph Knezz.

Rose's Actions in 2020

In 2020, Terry Rose joined several Republicans on the Kenosha County Board in a press conference which spread the false 'Evers Let Kenosha County Burn' political narrative. Both Sheriff David Beth, Mayor John Antaramian and County Executive Jim Kreuser refuted their claims about Gov. Evers but the political attacks based on statements made at that press conference were set in motion.

Rose's statements were used in a national news article which characterized Evers' response as inadequate. Those were then politicized by the state Republican party.

During that same time period, Rose signed onto a letter that was sent to Gov. Evers requesting additional assistance. It is not a County Board function to request help from the Governor. There are specific mechanisms already in place to request assistance and the members of the Local Emergency Planning Commissions bear that responsibility. Rose was not a member.

Rose's Misleading Endorsement of Zach Rodriguez for Clerk of Courts

In 2022, Republican Zach Rodriguez ran unsuccessfully for Kenosha Clerk of Courts. Rodriguez ran ads featuring a political endorsement by Terry Rose and Republican Party of Kenosha County chair Erin Decker, which gave the impression Zach had the bipartisan support of both parties' chairs. Lori Hawkins, the actual Chair of the Kenosha County Democratic Party, was forced to put out a statement correcting this misleading endorsement.

Rose's Actions Related to COVID

Rose's positions about COVID also raised concerns to many in the KCDP. He suggested to the Kenosha News that Rose would sue Gov. Evers over the mask mandate. There was much political division over COVID safety measures by members of the Kenosha County Board, many of whom refused to mask and who were upset that the Board was meeting virtually. In May 2022, when the County Board flipped majority Republican, Rose stated at an Executive Committee meeting that the new Board should scrutinize the powers of the Kenosha County Health Department.

Finally, Terry Rose co-sponsored a resolution that consolidated political power with the County Executive, giving that official the ability to fire and hire Division heads at will. There was considerable citizen pushback on this resolution, including from a number of Rose's constituents, as it raised concern in the community that Department and Division heads would no longer feel free to speak their minds without fear of being fired.

Our Evaluation:

For his poor constituent services, for contributing to the spread of misinformation about Gov. Evers' response, for his participation in a misleading endorsement of Zach Rodriguez which caused confusion for voters, for his anti-public health actions during COVID, and for his resolution consolidating power to the County Executive, our members no longer support Terry Rose.

We were proud to endorse Dr. Steph Knezz for Kenosha Supervisor, District 2.

Annette Flynn, District 3

Annette Flynn is a member of Moms for Liberty

Moms for Liberty is an anti-government extremist group, according to the nation's oldest civil rights watchdog, the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Southern Poverty Law Center was instrumental in defunding the KKK.

The news magazine 60 Minutes recently did a segment on the leaders of Moms for Liberty. You can watch it in its entirety here.

Moms for Liberty is the group behind a nation-wide wave of book bans which are targeting books in both school and public libraries. The books being targeted are primarily those with LGBT and race-inclusive content. There are already several other Moms for Liberty members on the Kenosha County Board which have targeted books in Kenosha's public libraries.

Moms for Liberty has also pushed for anti-LGBT legislation nationwide, including here in Wisconsin.

Amber Infusino (above) the head of Kenosha Moms for Liberty, at their national convention in Philadelphia last year.

Annette Flynn's Contentious Legal Actions

Flynn has a history of filing legal complaints and lawsuits against Kenosha County. She sued Kemper Center and lost; advocated to cut funding to Kemper Center in what WGTD characterized as part of "a long-standing grudge over operational issues that are held by a few local catering companies, with the charge led by Annette Flynn of Sophisticatering." According to news reports, Flynn peppered county government with open records requests" as a result of this grudge. In another instance, Flynn unsuccessfully tried to initiate legal action against a Supervisor on the County Board by filing a complaint with the DAs office. It was an apparently baseless complaint which was never pursued by the DAs office as the Supervisor had previously been advised by the County's corporation counsel that there was no conflict with his vote.

On July 21, 2021 Flynn signed onto a letter sent to Gov. Tony Evers, the State Legislature and the Joint Finance Committee, demanding to be reimbursed their taxes because students were learning virtually due to the pandemic. No action was taken on this demand.

Our Evaluation:

Flynn's membership in an extremist group and her contentious legal history make her a poor choice for the Kenosha County Board.

We recommend voters choose Jeff Gentz for Kenosha County Board District 3

Brian Thomas, District 5

Brian Thomas Pushes 2020 Election Conspiracies

Thomas is simultaneously running for KUSD school board and the Kenosha County Board. He has been endorsed by Moms for Liberty.

When Brian Thomas was elected Supervisor in 2022, he won by 12 votes. Since that time Thomas held events which propagated election conspiracy theories.

These 'election integrity' events were part of the 'Big Lie' spread after the 2020 presidential election that Trump lost the race due to election irregularities.

While Brian Thomas claimed the events were strictly "informational", the speakers he invited were election conspiracists.

According to the Wisconsin Examiner, Thomas recommended to the attendees the conspiracy-filled documentary “2000 Mules” produced by conservative activist Dinesh D’Souza. The election fraud claims in the movie have proven false, with the filmmaker admitting in court that there was never any evidence of voter fraud.

In addition to hosting his 'election integrity' events, Thomas was also part of a group of Republicans who sued the city of Kenosha over its administration of the 2020 presidential election during COVID.

The lawsuit claims appear tied to the Republican conspiracy that election grants, used to conduct safe elections during the pandemic, were somehow used to influence the election results.

Fact checkers have repeatedly found no evidence of widespread voter or election fraud.

Thomas' election grant lawsuit was handled by Erick Kardaal, the same lawyer who represented Trump in multiple lawsuits against the state of Wisconsin following the 2020 election, claiming voter and election fraud or irregularities.

Erick Kardaal, also tried suing Racine in a case related to the 2020 election.

Brian Thomas' lawyer Kardaal became involved in the Michael Gableman investigation into the 2020 election results. Gableman was hired by Republican leader Robin Vos after Trump publicly shamed Vos for not doing enough to prove fraud. The investigation cost Wisconsin taxpayers over $2.5 million. Michael Gableman found no widespread voter or election fraud.

Brian Thomas' case against the city of Kenosha was dismissed. It is unknown how much they may have cost Kenosha taxpayers.

Thomas later brought a resolution to the Kenosha County Board preventing the County from accepting election grants in the future.

Brian Thomas was appointed to the Racial and Ethnic Equity Commission

The REEC was created by the Kenosha County Board in August 2020 to address the public health crisis of systemic racism in Kenosha County caused by inequity in health care access, housing, policing, etc. The County Executive disbanded the REEC in November 2023, saying it had strayed far from the mission for which it had been created. The REEC had been embroiled for months in controversy, pursuing highly partisan issues. Thomas and REEC members spent months attempting to rename a gender and equity award, which had been named after the county’s first female chief of staff; seeking support for expanding the state’s school voucher program to Kenosha County; and supporting anti-abortion causes, among others.

Supervisor Jeff Gentz, recognizing the importance of the mission of the REEC, attempted to reinstate the Commission. He was unsuccessful when Brian Thomas, along with Republicans Erin Decker, Zach Stock, Brian Bashaw and Aaron Karrow killed a discussion on the proposal.

A recent analysis by a specialist, James Bird Guess, president and CEO of The Racial Equity Group, determined that Kenosha County's commitment to racial equity was 'stagnant.'

Brian Thomas' votes while on the County Board:

1. Yes to allow concealed weapons into Kenosha County buildings and parks;
2. No to allowing Kenosha County residents to vote on whether they want firearms in Kenosha County buildings and parks;
3. Yes to expand the powers of the County Executive to include firing and hiring Division heads at will;
4. Yes to declaring Kenosha County a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County; meaning gun safety laws wouldn't apply in Kenosha (Thomas motioned to approve this resolution even thought the Board's corporate counsel informed them the resolution was unconstitutional and legally meaningless);
5. Yes to putting a referendum on ballots to tell state legislators to declare Wisconsin a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary State (meaning no gun safety laws would apply in Wisconsin; also unconstitutional);
6. No to overriding County Executive Samantha Kerkman's veto of a solar energy resolution that recommended new business construction in Kenosha consider installing rooftop solar panels.

Our evaluation:

Thomas' alignment with Moms for Liberty, his promotion of election conspiracy theories, his role in taking the REEC off-track from its mission; his votes while on the board, and his attempt to serve on two government boards that meet on the same nights make him poorly suited to serve on the Kenosha County Board (and KUSD school board.)

We recommend voters choose David Arrington for Kenosha County Board, District 5

**Note: Brian Thomas is simultaneously running for KUSD school board. To see our evaluation of him as a school board candidate, click here.

Duane O'Keefe, District 6

Since 2007, the Department of Revenue has filed 42 delinquent tax warrants against Duane O'Keefe to get him to pay his taxes.

Our taxes pay for emergency services, roads, schools, our justice systems and other public services that benefit all of us.

Duane O'Keefe has proven he cannot manage his own money.

The Kenosha County Board manages a budget of over $138 million.

Duane O'Keefe's controversial appointment to Racial and Ethnic Equity Commission

O'Keefe was appointed to the Racial and Ethnic Equity Commission (REEC) by County Executivee Samantha Kerkman in spring 2023. The REEC was created by the Kenosha County Board in August 2020 to address the public health crisis of systemic racism in Kenosha County caused by inequity in health care access, housing, policing, etc. Within 7 months of O'Keefe's appointment, the County Executive disbanded the REEC, saying it had strayed far from the mission for which it had been created. The REEC had been embroiled for months in controversy following O'Keefe's appointment, pursuing highly partisan issues. O'Keefe and REEC members spent months attempting to rename a gender and equity award, which had been named after the county’s first female chief of staff; seeking support for expanding the state’s school voucher program to Kenosha County; and supporting anti-abortion causes, among others.

O'Keefe's appointment to a commission meant to address racial inequity was highly controversial given his social media posts:

Our Evaluation:

Duane O'Keefe's repeated failure to pay his taxes, his contribution to the failure of the REEC and his racist social media posts make him a poor choice to represent the people in his district and Kenosha County.

The Kenosha County Democratic Party is proud to endorse Andres Gama for Kenosha County Board, District 6

Zach Rodriguez, District 8

Zach Rodriguez has been the subject of rumors he does not live in his district for at least two years. A group called OpenGov Kenosha has posted a serious of photos that they say indicate Rodriguez does not live in his district, or at least did not live in his district at that time.

Rodriguez has engaged in troubling behavior during his time on the Kenosha County Board. In the last election, he won his seat following a tie vote by pulling a number out of an Easter basket.

Rodriguez Rejected for Kenosha County Public Health Committee for being 'vindictive, mean' 'combative and argumentative with County employees' and 'unprofessional'

Rodriguez was also rejected on two separate votes by the Board of Supervisors as an appointee to the Kenosha County Public Health Committee, first on August 1, 2023 and again on September 5, 2023.

In opposing his appointment, his fellow Republicans said he was "combative and argumentative with County department heads and staff" and "vindictive, mean" and showed "unprofessional behavior." You can listen to recordings of those meetings here and here.

Rodriguez Removed as Chair of Judiciary and Law Committee and Executive Committee

Despite Rodriguez being a Republican, the Chair of the Kenosha County Board, also a member of the Republican Party, abruptly removed Rodriguez from his seat as the Chair of the Judiciary and Law Committee in June 2023. The Board Chair offered no explanation for why Rodriguez was removed from the committee leadership position. Committee chairs typically serve terms concurrent with that of the County Board chair. Normally, Rodriguez's term would have expired in April of 2024. As a result of being removed as Chair of the Judiciary and Law Committee, Rodriguez was automatically removed from the County Board's Executive Committee.

Prior to his removal, Rodriguez had been accused by members of the public and even his fellow Republican Supervisors of failing to act with transparency in the meeting times of the Judiciary and Law Committee. Republican Supervisor Brian Bashaw referred to Rodriguez and others as acting in the shadows in a guest commentary published in the Kenosha News in April 2023.

Rodriguez has a History of Controversial Behavior

Rodriguez has a history of engaging in behavior that is unacceptable to his fellow Supervisors. Rodriguez, along with a few other Republican Supervisors, signed a letter with a fake county letterhead, inviting then-President Donald Trump to visit Kenosha in 2020, despite the fact that city leaders and the governor had asked Trump to postpone his visit until the city recovered following the Jacob Blake shooting. The letter Rodriguez signed had not gone through proper channels and most of Rodriguez's fellow Supervisors were unaware it had been sent, even though it was made to appear like an official communication from the Board. When Vice Chair of the Board, Monica Yuhas, tried to discuss this unethical action with Rodriguez, he summarily dismissed her objection. You can see video of that exchange here.

In that same meeting, Rodriguez told Supervisor Ron Frederick the county would be better off with him gone. Frederick died earlier this month.

You can see the letter Rodriguez, Decker and others signed that was sent with fake letterhead here:

In 2020, the business of the County Board ground to a halt when the bonding to fund Kenosha County projects failed. A number of Republicans voted against bonding and Rodriguez abstained, leaving the budget unfunded. WGTD characterized the failed vote--coming up one 'yes' short of the needed three-quarters majority-- the result of long-standing political and personal differences. Supervisor Jeff Gentz called it a "stupid stunt." Rodriguez and the other Supervisors refused to respond to WGTD News to explain why they were holding up the budget, which included police body cams they claimed to support. The budget was eventually passed at a later meeting.

In 2019, the Hispanic News Network reported Rodriguez had interacted on a MAGA page on Facebook that promotes Nazi propaganda in Wisconsin.

Misleading Endorsement Resulted in Public Response from the Kenosha County Democratic Party Chair

In 2022, Rodriguez ran for Clerk of Courts of Kenosha County. His opponent, Rebecca Matoska-Mentink, had secured many endorsements from both Republicans and Democratic leaders in Kenosha County.

Rodriguez began running a misleading paid Facebook advertisement that indicated he had the bipartisan support of the Chairs of the Republican and Kenosha County Parties. Because the ads gave the impression he had the support of the Democratic Party Chair, which he did not, a public statement was issued to clear up confusion caused by Rodriguez's advertisement.

Rodriguez Says He's on the County Board to Conduct Politics

At the July 19, 2023 Kenosha County Board meeting, the board Supervisors engaged in an extended debate on a resolution. During that debate, Rodriguez stated, "We all have a mission. Let's call it what it is. We're here to conduct politics." Supervisor Jeff Gentz was astounded at the remark and replied "I have a mission. It's to do the will of the people who elected me."

Rodriguez's Votes on the Board since 2022:

1. Yes to allow concealed weapons into Kenosha County buildings and parks;
2. No to allowing Kenosha County residents to vote on whether they want firearms in Kenosha County buildings and parks;
3. Yes to expand the powers of the County Executive to include firing and hiring Division heads at will;
4. Yes to declaring Kenosha County a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County; meaning gun safety laws wouldn't apply in Kenosha (Thomas motioned to approve this resolution even thought the Board's corporate counsel informed them the resolution was unconstitutional and legally meaningless);
5. Yes to putting a referendum on ballots to tell state legislators to declare Wisconsin a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary State (meaning no gun safety laws would apply in Wisconsin; also unconstitutional);
6. No to overriding County Executive Samantha Kerkman's veto of a solar energy resolution that recommended new business construction in Kenosha consider installing rooftop solar panels.
7. Yes to preventing Kenosha County from accepting help to fund elections through private grants.

Our evaluation:

Zach Rodriguez's behavior as a Supervisor has caused public concern and alienated Supervisors, including some of his fellow Republicans. The allegations that he mistreated Kenosha County staff is particularly concerning. His lack of transparency, misleading behavior and penchant for playing political games instead of doing the serious work of the County Board make him a poor candidate for re-election.

The Kenosha County Democratic Party has endorsed Sarah Kirby for Kenosha County Board District 8.

Tim Stocker, District 14

Stocker is a member of Kenosha Moms for Liberty

As mentioned above in our evaluation of Annette Flynn, Moms for Liberty is an anti-government extremist group that is leading the national wave of book bans and anti-LGBT legislation.

Elected to the Kenosha County Board 2 years ago by a 40 vote margin, Stocker has used his position as Supervisor to repeatedly attempt to censor public library materials, claiming they are 'pornographic.' He suggested that the National Endowment for the Arts Big Read book, Homegoing by Yaa Ngasi, was pornographic because it depicted the slave trade, including a rape scene.

In February, Stocker sponsored a resolution claiming the definition of pornography had changed and that there was pornography in Kenosha County libraries; Stocker's resolution suggested public libraries should set up segregated adult-only areas for materials to which he objected. He brought photos from the Kenosha Public Library of materials to which he objected, which included romance novels. His fellow supervisors rejected his resolution, with one of his fellow Supervisors calling Stocker a wanna-be 'smut buster' and said the County Board would embarrass itself by passing Stocker's resolution.

It should be noted, the Kenosha County Board has no authority over Kenosha Public Libraries; that responsibility lies with the Library Board.

You can read Stocker's resolution below:

Tim Stocker's votes while on the County Board:

1. Yes to allow concealed weapons into Kenosha County buildings and parks;
2. No to allowing Kenosha County residents to vote on whether they want firearms in Kenosha County buildings and parks;
3. Yes to expand the powers of the County Executive to include firing and hiring Division heads at will;
4. Yes to declaring Kenosha County a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County; meaning gun safety laws wouldn't apply in Kenosha (Thomas motioned to approve this resolution even thought the Board's corporate counsel informed them the resolution was unconstitutional and legally meaningless);
5. Yes to putting a referendum on ballots to tell state legislators to declare Wisconsin a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary State (meaning no gun safety laws would apply in Wisconsin; also unconstitutional);
6. No to overriding County Executive Samantha Kerkman's veto of a solar energy resolution that recommended new business construction in Kenosha consider installing rooftop solar panels.
7. Yes to preventing Kenosha County from accepting help to fund elections through private grants.

Our evaluation:

Tim Stocker's membership in the extremist group Moms for Liberty, his attacks on the public library/head librarian, and library materials; along with his votes while on the Board indicate he is not fit to serve another term.

The members of the KCDP are proud to endorse Roseann Baldauf-Shales for District 14

Erica Millar, District 16

Erica Millar is a first time candidate for the Kenosha County Board.

Millar hid that she is an anti-abortion activist and the Vice President of a Christian Nationalist organization

Millar removed online information about her anti-abortion and Christian Nationalist associations just prior to running for the Kenosha County Board.

In November 2023, prior to initiating her campaign in December, Millar's bio at the University of Northwestern St. Paul included the statements that she is an "active member of American Association of Pro-Life OBGYNs", she loves to "share a Biblical worldview" and that she serves on the international pro-life organizations PassionLife and is the Vice President of the Turning Point USA Faith Chapter for Kenosha and Racine counties."

You can see that bio in November 2023:

Here is her current bio with that information deleted. You can find her bio online here.

Before she ran for office in Nov 2023:

Today:

Millar taught at a University which bars LGBT students and staff and prepares its student body for 'God-honoring leadership in the community'

The University where Millar chose to teach (and from which she has since scrubbed the previously referenced information from her bio) is rated one of the worst in the nation for LGBTQ+ youth by Campus Pride. In fact, University of Northwestern in Minnesota (not to be confused with Northwestern University in IL) took federal aid money while barring openly LGBT students from attending and prohibiting LGBT in employment on the campus. The University of Northwestern applied for Title IX exemption with the federal government in order to discriminate against LGBT students and staff but to continue to receive federal aid because they are s a 'Christ-centered higher education institute.' The application for exemption said the University prepares its students to 'give God-honoring leadership in the home, church, community and world.'

Northwestern University is also the only institution of higher learning in Minnesota that not only bars openly lesbian, gay, and bisexual students, but also has explicit policies against transgender students as well.

The application for admission includes a “Declaration of a Christian Community” and asks prospective students to agree to “stand together against all that the Bible clearly condemns: greed and materialism, dishonesty (plagiarism included), prejudice, social injustice… homosexual behavior and all other sexual relations outside the bounds of marriage between one man and one woman, murder/homicide (including abortion)…”

Erica Millar is the Vice President of the Kenosha Racine Chapter of a Christian Nationalist Organization

Turning Point Faith is a Trump-aligned Christian Nationalist organization. Christian Nationalism is the idea that Christians should dominate government and other areas of life in the United States.

Turning Point Faith's website reads "We empower millions of Americans who are prepared to defend our God-given rights, by giving them the tools to expose lies and articulate the connection between Faith and Freedom."

“We want believers writing the laws of this land,” said TurningPoint Faith leader Sean Feucht.

Charlie Kirk's Turning Point investor prospectus in 2021 included their seven pronged approach by MAGA youth to “win the American Culture War and to inspire our kids [to] love America again.”

TurningPointUSA, founded in 2012, expanded into TurningPointFaith in 2019 through Mega Churches and conferences, with pamphlets that read “We play offense with a sense of urgency to win America’s culture war.” Kirk describes their mission as a passionate opposition to “wokeism” — a term pastors use to describe an array of liberal campaigns for racial justice and LGBTQ rights.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, Turning Point has promoted numerous conspiracy theories about election fraud and COVID-19 and has demonized the transgender community and the group is a magnet for White nationalists.

Erica Millar sits on the Board of an Anti-Abortion Organization

Millar also removed the information that she sits on the board of PassionLife, which describes itself as "a global missions partner to missionaries and Indigenous Christian leaders, where the plague of abortion...is especially concentrated." The website describes discipling people in a biblical worldview and using abortion guilt and grief as an entry point to the Gospel.

While Millar removed the information from her bio, she is still listed as a Board member on the PassionLife website:

Erica Millar Heads a Crisis Pregnancy Center in Kenosha

At a time when women need access to as much evidence-based, medically accurate information about their reproductive health as possible, crisis pregnancy centers mislead and lie to women, according to the Wisconsin Alliance for Women's Health.

These centers pretend to be medical clinics that offer health care services and all-options counseling for pregnant people. They do not. These fake centers are funded by anti-abortion groups and go by different names like "crisis pregnancy centers" (CPCs) and "pregnancy resource centers." Their aim is to prevent people who are pregnant from accessing abortion in a timely manner. They advertise services such as pregnancy testing, ultrasounds, counseling, and resources. Some even say they offer abortion referrals. However, in reality, they fail to provide medically accurate information and even mislead women about their abortion care options.

The Alliance Women's Health Clinic in Kenosha (note the similarity to the Wisconsin Alliance for Women's Health) states on their website they will not provide or refer women for abortions.

These fake centers often use manipulative tactics to get pregnant people to delay real counseling or medical care until it's too late for a legal abortion. Women often say that they went to a so-called "pregnant resource center" first because they believed it was a Planned Parenthood health center or another real medical clinic. These fake health centers are often found through an internet search, a referral from a biased doctor, an advertisement from a billboard, promises of financial help and resources like baby supplies, or misleading signage.

Our Evaluation:

Erica Millar scrubbed the evidence that she is a Christian Nationalist and anti-abortion activist before running for the Kenosha County Board in District 16. Her extreme ideologies make her a poor candidate to represent voters in her district and in the County.

We recommend voting for Frederick Brookhouse for Kenosha County Board, District 16

Eric Meadows, District 18

Meadows is a member of Kenosha Moms for Liberty

Meadows has served on the KUSD school board since 2022 and has been a controversial figure. As mentioned earlier on this page, Moms for Liberty is an anti-government extremist group. The organization is driving the national wave of book bans, anti-LGBT legislation and the Kenosha chapter members have shut down KUSD school board meetings when they are unhappy, including as the school district was trying to navigate during the pandemic.

Meadows was the victim of a terrible announcing error made by the KUSD school district, which impacted the time he served on the school board. You can read our statement about that here. It was an unacceptable situation and Meadows sued the school district over it, which was his right.

However, Meadows hired the highly controversial lawyer who represented Trump in numerous lawsuits claiming election fraud following the 2020 presidential election who proceeded to politicize the error. Meadows lawyer was also involved in Michael Gableman's election fraud investigation, and sued Wisconsin over military ballots, over the use of drop boxes and over claims of nursing home voting irregularities. Meadows lawyer lost all of those cases. Meadows lost his lawsuit against KUSD with the court determining KUSD acted appropriately. It has not been revealed how much that lawsuit cost the school district.

Meadows also went on Fox News to speculate the clerical error may have been an intentional move to remove him from the board for political purposes, because he was a conservative.

Meadows was a divisive figure on the KUSD board, voting against including language "for the greater good" in student's community competencies, and while he voted to honor Polish Heritage Month, he was the only KUSD school board member to vote NO to honoring Black History Month in KUSD schools. Despite claiming to support "parent's rights" Meadows proposed ending all standing committees at the October 24, 2023 school board meeting.

Meadows supported removing and restricting access to books while on the school board. The Wisconsin ACLU got involved due to the anti-LGBT rhetoric surrounding the KUSD book challenges.

Meadows appears to enjoy using his campaign social media page to stir controversy. He once claimed "The traditional family has been the fundamental society for thousands of years. Break apart this fundamental unit and society will collapse." When asked to describe the traditional family, he said it was a "two parent household raising children." Kenosha County has many families who don't fit Meadows' definition including single parent families, grandparents raising grandchildren, parents with shared custody, etc. They are not causing our society to collapse.

Meadows also likes to post about what he calls "modern woke indoctrination" and "progressive indoctrination" which is how he refers to policies that are LGBT inclusive.

Our Evaluation:

Eric Meadows membership in an extremist group which is behind a nation-wide wave of book bans and anti-LGBT legislation; his controversial behavior on the KUSD school board; his politicization of an election error and suggestion it was intentional; his enjoyment of stirring up controversy, and opposition to inclusive policies which he refers to as "progressive indoctrination" make him a poor candidate for the Kenosha County Board.

The members of the Kenosha County Democratic Party have endorsed Justine Hammelev-Jones for District 18

District 20, John Poole

We could not find evidence that Poole is a member of Moms for Liberty, however, he has been active in the attacks of Kenosha County public libraries over his claim of 'pornography' and is a member of the Salem Library Board.

Poole co-sponsored a Kenosha County Board library resolution which claimed the definition of pornography had changed and called on the public library to set up adult-only areas to house pornography, meaning library materials of which he disapproved.

The County Board members resoundingly rejected the resolution, with one of his fellow Supervisors calling Poole and the other two co-sponsors wanna-be 'smut busters'' and said the County Board would embarrass itself by passing Stocker's resolution.

Poole has also spoken at the Salem Library during citizen comments, in April of last year saying he has "concerns about the costs and benefits of the library."

Questions Remain About Handling Other People's Money

Poole, a Republican Party of Kenosha County Executive Board member, was involved in a defamation lawsuit filed by Republican businessman Joe Clark against the RPKC Executive board members.

Clark filed the lawsuit because of a defaming post on the RPKC's Facebook page. The RPKC Facebook post also defamed the reputation of the Kenosha Community Health Center (KCHC), a local medical center serving low-income and uninsured individuals, according to Clark's lawsuit.

Poole was named in the lawsuit along with four other RPKC Executive Board members. County Board Supervisor Erin Decker, District 22, was the chair of the RPKC at the time. Decker eventually confessed to having made the Facebook post. The other RPKC Executive Board members were then dropped from the lawsuit.

Decker eventually settled the lawsuit before it went to trial, paying $10,000 to Clark out of her personal funds.

However, financial reports the RPKC filed with the Wisconsin Ethics Commission showed the party paid $23,566 to lawyers hired to defend Decker and other RPKC Executive board members, including Poole, in the defamation lawsuit. That amount is over twice the amount Decker finally paid to settle the lawsuit.

The five RPKC Executive board members, including Poole, abruptly stepped down.

Clark had originally offered to settle the defamation lawsuit for $500 in attorney's fees and a $1000 donation to the KCHC along with assurances the footprint of the social media post had been removed. Poole, Decker and the rest of the RPKC Executive Board refused, instead paying $23,566 in RPKC funds.

Sandy Wiedmeyer, who became chair of the RPKC after Decker, Poole and the rest of the Executive Board stepped down, told the Wisconsin Examiner that she and other party members were unaware of the legal bill that the party had racked up in defending the case against Decker, Poole and the rest of the old RPKC Executive Board.

“Much of the membership wasn’t aware of the lawsuit and … the money that was spent towards that lawsuit,” said Wiedmeyer.

Decker's teenaged daughter was the RPKC treasurer at the time.

It is unknown if Poole and his fellow RPKC Executive board members voted to approve the payouts of party funds to lawyers to defend Decker in the defamation lawsuit.

The new RPKC chair, Wiedmeyer, listed “building trust among our membership” and being “transparent” in the party’s operations as the top task internally for the new party board following Poole, Decker and the RPKC board member's abrupt resignations.

Poole's Votes While on the County Board

1. Yes to allow concealed weapons into Kenosha County buildings and parks;
2. No to allowing Kenosha County residents to vote on whether they want firearms in Kenosha County buildings and parks;
3. Yes to expand the powers of the County Executive to include firing and hiring Division heads at will;
4. Yes to declaring Kenosha County a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County; meaning gun safety laws wouldn't apply in Kenosha (Thomas motioned to approve this resolution even thought the Board's corporate counsel informed them the resolution was unconstitutional and legally meaningless);
5. Yes to putting a referendum on ballots to tell state legislators to declare Wisconsin a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary State (meaning no gun safety laws would apply in Wisconsin; also unconstitutional);
6. No to overriding County Executive Samantha Kerkman's veto of a solar energy resolution that recommended new business construction in Kenosha consider installing rooftop solar panels.
7. Yes to preventing Kenosha County from accepting help to fund elections through private grants.

Our evaluation:

Poole's attacks on Kenosha County public libraries, the shadow that remains over the trouble that roiled the top of the Republican Party of Kenosha County relating to the defamation lawsuit, and Poole's votes while on the board make him a poor candidate for re-election.

We recommend voting Michael La Forge for Kenosha County District 20

Erin Decker, District 22

Decker is a member of Moms for Liberty

Moms for Liberty is behind a wave of book bans across the nation, with a high percentage of those books containing minority characters. Moms for Liberty members in Kenosha County have attacked books both in school libraries and in Kenosha's public libraries.

Decker was a co-sponsor on a resolution claiming the definition of pornography had changed and calling for books to which she objects to be segregated into an adults only section of the library.

The County Board members resoundingly rejected the resolution, with one of his fellow Supervisors calling Decker and the other two co-sponsors wanna-be 'smut busters'' and said the County Board would embarrass itself by passing Stocker's resolution.

Decker is no stranger to controversial behavior

Decker cast the only NO vote on the Kenosha County Board in 2020 against a resolution that declared racism a public health crisis. The measure also called for an end to racial disparities throughout county government. 

Weeks later came the Aug. 23 police shooting of Jacob Blake, followed by sometimes violent protests in downtown Kenosha. Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed two protestors and permanently injured a third.

At a County Board meeting following the events, County residents appealed for understanding during a two-hour public comment period. Decker refused to turn and face the residents of the County who had come to speak.

“This is appalling behavior by an elected official. Appalling and unacceptable,” the Kenosha News stated in a sharply worded editorial, adding that “no elected official is entitled to treat the citizens she represents with contempt.”

In 2020, the business of the County Board ground to a halt when the bonding to fund Kenosha County projects failed. A number of Republicans voted against bonding and Rodriguez abstained, leaving the budget unfunded. WGTD characterized the failed vote--coming up one 'yes' short of the needed three-quarters majority-- the result of long-standing political and personal differences. Supervisor Jeff Gentz called it a "stupid stunt." Rodriguez and the other Supervisors refused to respond to WGTD News to explain why they were holding up the budget, which included police body cams they claimed to support. The budget was eventually passed at a later meeting.

Decker's Use of Republican Party Money Questioned as Teen Daughter Acts As "Treasurer"

Questions about Decker's use of Republican Party of Kenosha County (RPKC) funds to defend herself in a defamation lawsuit were raised in early 2023. According to the Wisconsin Examiner, Decker's teenaged daughter was acting as the treasurer for the RPKC at the time the funds from the RPKC were paid out to defend Decker in a defamation lawsuit brought by one of her fellow Republicans.

As detailed in the previous section on John Poole, over $23,000 of RPKC funds were used to defend Decker in a defamation lawsuit because of statements posted on the RPKC Facebook page. Decker ultimately settled the lawsuit before going to trial. Decker and the rest of the RPKC Executive Board abruptly stepped down without explanation.

The amount of RPKC funds spent by Decker and the RPKC Executive Board defending the lawsuit was over twice the settlement amount and many times higher than the amount for which the plaintiff, Joe Clark, had originally offered to settle the case.

Sandy Wiedmeyer, who then became RPKC chair, told the Wisconsin Examiner that she and other RPKC members were unaware of the legal bill that the party had racked up in the case until Decker, Poole and the rest of the RPKC Executive board resigned.

“Much of the membership wasn’t aware of the lawsuit and … the money that was spent towards that lawsuit,” said Wiedmeyer.

Wiedmeyer listed “building trust among our membership” and being “transparent” in the RPKC’s operations as the top task internally for the new RPKC board following Decker and other RPKC Executive board member's abrupt departure.

Joe Clark, a Republican and the plaintiff in the defamation lawsuit that Decker eventually settled, has created a website called ErinDeckerFacts.com:

Erin Decker and Associates Sign Letter to Donald Trump on facsimile County letterhead without Board approval

Decker and several other Republican members of the Kenosha County Board, without knowledge or permission from their fellow board members, sent a letter to Donald Trump on what appeared to be an official-looking letterhead, inviting him to visit Kenosha in the summer of 2020 following the Jacob Blake shootings and subsequent protests and violence. However, it was not official county letterhead, it was a facsimile created to appear official. The letter was sent without having gone through the rest of the board. As mentioned in the section earlier on Zach Rodriguez, this caused tension and disagreement among board members for what some considered an unethical action by Decker, Rodriguez and those who signed the letter.

Additionally, Kenosha leaders as well as Gov. Evers had requested Trump postpone his visit because law enforcement members were exhausted and the city needed to heal.

Decker's votes on the Board since 2022:

1. Yes to allow concealed weapons into Kenosha County buildings and parks;
2. No to allowing Kenosha County residents to vote on whether they want firearms in Kenosha County buildings and parks;
3. Yes to expand the powers of the County Executive to include firing and hiring Division heads at will;
4. Yes to declaring Kenosha County a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County; meaning gun safety laws wouldn't apply in Kenosha (Thomas motioned to approve this resolution even thought the Board's corporate counsel informed them the resolution was unconstitutional and legally meaningless);
5. Yes to putting a referendum on ballots to tell state legislators to declare Wisconsin a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary State (meaning no gun safety laws would apply in Wisconsin; also unconstitutional);
6. No to overriding County Executive Samantha Kerkman's veto of a solar energy resolution that recommended new business construction in Kenosha consider installing rooftop solar panels.
7. Yes to preventing Kenosha County from accepting help to fund elections through private grants.

Our evaluation:

Decker is a member of Moms for Liberty and has used her Supervisor seat to attempt to censor the Kenosha Public Library over false claims of pornography. The Wisconsin Examiner reported Decker and her teenaged daughter handled RPKC member's funds to defend Decker in a defamation lawsuit without RPKC members being aware. Decker has refused to acknowledge the public health impact of systemic racism in Kenosha County. Decker has treated Kenosha citizens with indifference and a lack of respect while in her official capacity. Decker signed a controversial letter on official County Board letterhead without going through proper channels. Decker has sponsored or voted in favor of highly partisan resolutions since the 2022 election. Decker is poorly suited to be a Supervisor on the Kenosha County Board.

Vote for common sense candidates for Kenosha County Board on April 2nd.

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