AD 93 Primary: Phelps (D) vs Butler (D), Rolbiecki (R) on deck
Phelps Wins!
A competitive Assembly District race, but likely Democrat says the analysis I read. Wispolitics.com said that the dynamics of the race that Republican Incumbent Warren Petryk was drawn into this district. Petryk was first elected in 2010 and decided to retire rather than face a defeat. This retirement dealt a blow to GOP hopes of holding the seat and only one Republican filed to run in this race, which is rare when their is an open seat. Maybe the writing is on the wall for the GOP in this race.
Located in western Wisconsin, the 93rd Assembly District comprises parts of western Eau Claire County, northern Trempealeau County, and southeast Dunn County. It includes the western half of the city of Eau Claire, along with the city of Osseo and the villages of Eleva and Strum.
James Rolbiecki (R – Eau Claire)
Rolbiecki, 40, announced his candidacy for the 93rd State Assembly District seat Tuesday at the Eau Claire County Republican headquarters. Rolbiecki describes himself as a real estate developer and entrepreneur. He grew up in Eau Claire and graduated from Memorial High School in 2002. He was elected as a town of Washington supervisor in 2023. – source
Currently on the board of supervisors for the town of Washington. Works in real estate. No website or campaign facebook page found. We will circle back around after the primary and check with our boots on the ground.
Update after the primary: Rolbiecki still does not have any social media or campaign website listed on Ballotpedia or that we could find. Giving that this is a likely Democrat seat we are not going to spend much more time trying to hunt this candidate down. If you are field activist, please watch for local events of this guy and get back to us!
Rolbiecki did not respond to a request to fill out the guide in the local newspaper Hudson Star Observer on August 9th.
The Democrats
Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire)
Winner with 52%
Candidate Phelps received an A+ rating from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
Christian Phelps has legalization of cannabis on his official campaign website as a priority issue and it states:
Wisconsin is increasingly becoming a bubble. Despite the fact that legalizing marijuana would be immensely popular, our regressive, Republican-led legislature has kept Wisconsin stuck in the past even as our Midwestern neighbors have moved forward. By legalizing, taxing, and regulating cannabis, and expunging the records of those unjustly arrested for possession or use, we can keep families together and open up a new stream of public revenue.
Phelps pointed to support from Wisconsinites for marijuana legalization — in January, polling from the Marquette Law School showed 63% of Wisconsinites favored full legalization of marijuana, and 29% were opposed.
“I join over 60% of Wisconsinites in supporting legalization of marijuana and joining our Midwestern neighbors that are benefiting from the tax revenue it could generate, and I oppose splitting up families and continuing cycles of incarceration by locking people up for possession and use of marijuana,” Phelps said. “This is an extremely popular issue and a perfect example of how the gerrymandered Republican Legislature has not had to listen to the public.”
Campaign Website for Christian Phelps and Campaign Facebook Page.
Nickolas Butler (D-Fall Creek)
Candidate Butler received an A- rating from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
Butler said he has greater priorities than marijuana legalization for the 93rd AD. Even so, he would support legalizing marijuana “full stop.”
“We’re losing tons of revenue over our border every day to people that are buying their marijuana in Michigan or Illinois, and that is just stupid,” Butler said. “That’s revenue we could be capturing as a state or as local communities.”
Campaign Facebook Page / Campaign Website
Stay tuned and get active!
I will provide you additional 2024 Wisconsin State Election coverage throughout the campaign season. This next election is extremely important for marijuana reform and I will continue to bring you information as more candidates make their political moves.
In the event that we end up with divided government in the 2024-25 legislation session, the official formation of The Wisconsin Cannabis Caucus would be a must first step towards reform. The official establishment of this Caucus will represent the growing, bipartisan support in Wisconsin.
Although session as ended we still urge you to contact your elected officials. The top four action alerts are still functionable on The Wisconsin Cannabis Activist Action Network for you immediate use.
Sources: CNanalysis, WisPolitics, Davesredistircing, PeoplesMaps
