Madison Rep. Shelia Stubbs says she'll leave Assembly for Dane County job if she gets it

MADISON - A Democratic member of the state Assembly said Thursday she plans to resign if she takes over a county agency after previously telling constituents she would keep both jobs and pushed back against criticism of her intentions.

Rep. Shelia Stubbs, D-Madison, announced her plans to step down in a tweet, after facing pushback over her plans to both take on the role of Dane County Human Services director and continue in her role as a legislator.

"I have decided that upon confirmation my intention is to submit my resignation to the Governor," she wrote in the tweet.

Stubbs was nominated for the human services position earlier this month by Dane County Executive Joe Parisi. She must be confirmed by county board members before she can take over the role.

The future of Stubbs' appointment remains unclear after she made comments earlier this month at a church event that some county board members characterized as disqualifying, according to WISC-TV.

"They want me to resign from my state rep job because I just got appointed the county director job. They said I can't do two jobs at one time — I can walk and eat and talk (and do what I need to do)," Stubbs said at the event, according to the TV report.

"They have to be shooken up. They have to be shooken up," Stubbs added of the board. "Not only do they have to be shooken up, they have to know those seats belong to the people. Every two years, they get elected, so if they don't represent us, they don't need the seat."

Dane County Supervisor Yogesh Chawla said in a statement Stubbs' comments appeared to be aimed at intimidating the board, according to WISC-TV.

"I was disgusted to see that State Rep. Stubbs said my colleagues on the County Board need to be 'shooken up' and that the Department of Human Services Director job will be taken 'by force,'" Chawla said in the statement.

Parisi told the TV station Stubbs' comments were in no way related to violence.

“From her time working in community centers, tutoring kids as a special education instructor, to her extensive experience in local and state government and mentoring people in the criminal justice system, Representative Stubbs brings her depth of service to this community to the most public facing work that county government does; administering all of our services for vulnerable populations,” Parisi said in an April 13 press release about his nomination of Stubbs.

Stubbs was elected to the Assembly in 2018 and has since helped lead an Assembly task force on policing, pushed for the memorialization of trailblazer Vel Phillips on the Capitol grounds and led the Legislature's Black caucus.

She was also a member of the Dane County Board from 2006 to 2022.

Stubbs was originally reluctant to step down from the Assembly, originally telling her constituents she could do both jobs, according to a report from the Wisconsin State Journal. But after criticism from Parisi, Stubbs changed her mind.

Stubbs' appointment to the director position will go before the Dane County Board in the coming weeks.

If she's confirmed, Gov. Tony Evers will be required to call a special election in the 77th Assembly District, which covers Madison's west side.

Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on Twitter at @SchulteLaura.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Rep. Shelia Stubbs plans to leave Assembly if she gets Dane County job