Transforming Wisconsin: Five Year Impact

Five years ago liberals dominated politics in Wisconsin. Yet today Wisconsinites enjoy more freedom and carry a lower tax burden as a result of a host of conservative reforms. American Majority opened a Wisconsin chapter five years ago and began to identify and train a new generation of conservative leaders and activists who have worked tirelessly to defend their freedoms.

Since that time, American Majority Wisconsin has trained 5,627 in total (4,909 activists and 718 new leaders) at nearly 200 trainings. 265 of our new leader-trainees have run for office, with 225 of them advancing out of their primaries and 58 percent winning their general. Training 131 Winning Conservatives The spring 2014 cycle saw an impressive 44 American Majority-trained new leaders win their races for local offices. Cumulatively, American Majority Wisconsin has trained 131 new leaders who have won state or local races. The winners now include:

• 20 State Legislators
• 45 County Board Supervisors
• 34 Municipal Level Leaders
• 24 School Board Members
• 1 County Clerk
• 7 Judges

Supporting Student Leaders American Majority also helps to develop young leaders through a Campus Majority Training Program. Over the past three years, American Majority Wisconsin has trained 1,883 students and equipped them with the tools to run campaigns, hold liberal professors accountable, and influence their peers.

American Majority launched the Youth Grassroots Training Program this past year to inspire young people to embrace the Founding Father’s vision for America, defend their conservative values, and use their voice to impact their communities. This program trained more than 696 high school students.

Pioneering Conservative Reforms Conservatives have done big things in Wisconsin with the training they received. Leaders like Deanna Alexander and Jennifer Grant were early trainees, who ran successfully for County Board and have stood up for the taxpayers. Students like Josh Drevs and Jason Schneider learned how to become effective conservative activists or as we call them Effectivists.

Other students played critical roles in campaigns, for instance, serving as campaign managers for winning races. State legislators like Michael Schraa have taken on incumbents and won, helping to move the state legislature further to the right. Conservatives like Josh Schoemann, are pioneering conservative reforms, such as priority-based budgeting, at the local level, while community leaders, like Jake Curtis, are identifying and helping elect conservative judges and legislators.

Flipping Liberal Boards The spring 2014 cycle saw two important local boards flip from liberal control to conservative control. The highlight of the cycle came in Kenosha, where Dan Wade came in first place for Kenosha Unified School Board and defeated an incumbent who was part of the majority, which had voted for an allegedly illegal union contract. Dan’s victory led to a flipping of the board, so that conservatives now have a majority.

Menomonee Falls Village Board was another board flipped by trainees. In 2010, the board handed out a $17 million interest-free loan to developers, who promptly went bankrupt.  Conservatives led by the Menomonee Falls Taxpayers Association fought back. American Majority-trained new leaders won in multiple cycles, culminating in two key victories on April 1, 2014. Katie Kress and Chris Smolik each won more than 56 percent of the vote in individual three-way races. Their victories resulted in a complete sea change on the Village Board, which is now conservative-controlled.

Crafting Free Market Reforms As a result of having a conservative state legislature, Wisconsin has seen significant free market reforms. In 2011 after conservatives had flipped the state legislature and governor’s office, Wisconsin gained collective bargaining reforms, Voter ID, property and income tax cuts, tort reform, and concealed carry, all of which were championed and voted for by the two American Majority-trained legislators in the legislature at the time. As taxes have gone down in Wisconsin, American Majority trainees have voted 28 times to reduce the tax burden.

Nine American Majority trainees co-sponsored critical mining legislation, which will help to create jobs in northern Wisconsin. We are proud of the strong record of success over the past five years. It would not be possible without the grassroots leaders and activists who have fought in elections, recalls, policy fights, and more to stand up for the hard-working taxpayers. There are too many to name, but they are the heroes who are improving their communities and our state for future generations. On Wisconsin!