Your Daily Guide

This is the first time that Democrats have held control of the state Assembly, Senate, and governorship since 2010 and party leadership is ready to hit the ground running.

Reversing Republican Policies

At Governor-elect David Crowley’s victory party, Democratic Assembly Leader Greta Neubauer told supporters that now is the time to “end decades of Republican obstructionism.” Both Neubauer and Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said lowering costs, increasing funding for public education, legalizing cannabis, and securing abortion access are top priorities.

• State Sen. Kelda Roys, who represents much of Madison, said democratic voters want to see the Legislature get things done and address the key issues of “affordability, wages, public education, and health care.” [WPR, WORT]

Goodbye Act 10?

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse political science professor Anthony Chergosky expects Democrats to nix the Scott-Walker-era policy that prevents public employees from collective bargaining. Chergosky told Cap Times the party is also sitting on a backlog of policies that they will also want to prioritize, like offering universal school meals and legalizing recreational cannabis. [CapTimes]

Stretching Across the Aisle

State Democrats have previously said they hope to work with their Republican colleagues, and avoid working in party-specific silos. Sen. Brad Pfaff, a Democrat from Onalaska, said in an interview with Wisconsin Watch before Election Day “I firmly do believe that it is important that we allow both sides to be heard and for a variety of issues to be considered, and that just hasn’t happened over the last few years.” [Wisconsin Watch]

👀 Interim Chancellor Missing From Finalist Pool: Dr. Eric Wilcots is not among the three finalists for UW-Madison’s next chancellor, and some alumni are upset about that. In a letter to UW system’s Board of Regents President Kyle Weatherly, 25 members of the Board of Visitors expressed their disappointment that the interim chancellor was not among the finalists. They wrote, “we firmly believe his exclusion does not serve the best interests of UW-Madison.”

• The three chancellor finalists will give presentations to the public and campus community this week at Tripp Commons in the Memorial Union. [Cap Times, UW News]

😷 Wisconsin Infant Dies From Measles: A baby in southwestern Wisconsin died amid an outbreak of the disease. This is the first measles death in the state since 1990. Measles is preventable but vaccinations rates in school-aged Wisconsin children are at a near-record low. [News 3, Cap Times]

✈️ MSN Is Busier Than Ever: The Dane County Regional Airport is set to finish 2026 with a record-breaking amount of travelers. Last year, the airport saw 2.5 million passengers (the current record) and has experienced an 8% increase already this year. For smooth sailing, travelers should expect to arrive at least 90 minutes early and brace for parking garage construction in 2027. [Cap Times]

🏠 New Neighborhood Breaks Ground: The housing developer Veridian is making way on a plan to build Reiland Grove. The neighborhood will include 561 new homes on Madison’s far east side. [News 3]

🍂 Some Tree Leaves Take Longer To Leave: Have you noticed how some trees are totally bald right now while others are still holding on to a good number of leaves? Apparently, there are several reasons for this! Sky Hershberger, from UW-Madison Extension's forestry and wildlife program, says different species drop leaves at different times, and weather has a big impact on when leaves fall. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]

📍 Did Wisconsin’s New Maps Make the Dem Trifecta Possible? On today’s podcast, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign Executive Director Nick Ramos talks with creative producer Rob Thomas and executive producer Hayley Sperling about his organization's fight for our current legislative maps and how the state can ensure fair maps moving forward. Plus, the three give their best tips for thriving in Madison.