There will be contested primaries for the 71st state Assembly race and the Portage County Sheriff in August
STEVENS POINT – Two Republicans will compete for their party's nomination to take on Democratic state Rep. Katrina Shankland as she seeks reelection to the state Assembly.
Wednesday was the state deadline for candidates to file nomination papers for this fall's partisan elections, and the Assembly race is among those that will feature an August primary contest.
On Aug. 9, Republicans Scott Soik and Robert Glisczinski will compete to face incumbent Shankland, who is seeking her fifth term representing the 71st Assembly District encompassing Stevens Point and eastern Portage County.
The filing deadline on Wednesday also revealed a competitive race for Portage County sheriff. Incumbent Sheriff Mike Lukas will need to fend off two challengers this fall to retain his seat, one running as a Democrat and another as a Republican. Lukas will need to defeat Florian Chojnacki Jr. on Aug. 9 in the Democratic primary and then Republican Scott Noble on Nov. 8.
Here are the decisions facing voters in the Portage County area, based on state records. An asterisk (*) indicates a race that will require a primary; (i) denotes incumbent:
24th Senate District
State Sen. Patrick Testin, of Stevens Point, will not be up for reelection in 2022. However, Testin announced last fall he would seek the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor.
Should Testin win his party's nomination for lieutenant governor among a crowded field of eight other candidates and win again in November, a special election would need to be held to fill the remaining two years of his Senate term.
40th Assembly District
Republican: Kevin Petersen (i), Waupaca
Independent: Henry Fries, Waupaca
70th Assembly District
Republican: Nancy VanderMeer (i), Tomah
Democrat: Remberto A. Gomez, Tomah
71st Assembly District
Democrat: Katrina Shankland (i), Stevens Point
Republican*: Robert Glisczinski, Amherst; Scott C. Soik, Linwood
72nd Assembly District
Republican: Scott Krug (i), Nekoosa
Democrat: Criste Greening, Wisconsin Rapids
Portage County sheriff
Democrat*: Mike Lukas (i), Florian Chojnacki Jr.
Republican: Scott Noble
Portage County clerk of courts
Democrat: Lisa Roth (i)
Republican: None
Stevens Point's road funding and Business 51 referendum
City residents will see a referendum question on their August ballots stemming from a controversial $48.5 million plan to rebuild 3 miles of the city's share of Business 51 through the heart of Stevens Point. The plans call for reducing the number of lanes, adding bike lanes and a roundabout along the corridor.
The referendum emerged after the city council rejected a request by Division and Church street business owners and residents to hold a public vote on the project due to its scale. They submitted 2,011 valid signatures in January to trigger a referendum on the project.
The referendum would create an ordinance that would require the city to hold public votes on all road and transportation projects valued at more than $1 million. Opponents of the referendum say the proposed ordinance would bring city government to a standstill if it needed voter approval for almost every road project it looks to do.
The proposed ordinance reads:
Prior to the start of any physical construction of any municipally financed (in whole or in part) public roadway or transportation project requiring a city capital expenditure of $1,000,000.00 or more, the common council shall submit to the electorate a binding referendum for approval of the project. Failure of the binding referendum shall preclude the city from proceeding with the project. The wording of any referendum shall provide the specific purpose, location and cost of the project. Nothing in this provision shall be construed to preclude the city from exercising its role in the planning or design of such publicly financed projects.
Contact reporter Alan Hovorka at 715-345-2252 or ahovorka@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ajhovorka.
This article originally appeared on Stevens Point Journal: Stevens Point elections: Shankland, Portage County sheriff contested
