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Assembly or Senate? Rep. Doyle weighs his options after Shilling announces retirement

Published

5 years ago

April 2, 2020

Jennifer Shilling’s decision to retire from the Wisconsin Senate at the end of the year has caught plenty of observers by surprise, including other legislators she works closely with, like Onalaska’s Steve Doyle.

“I think most people were pretty surprised, because she has worked her way up to a leadership position in the Senate, and that’s not something that you give up lightly,” said Doyle, the 94th District Assemblyman.

Doyle and Shilling served together on the La Crosse County Board, and briefly in the Assembly until Shilling won the 32nd District Senate seat in a 2011 recall election.

Democrat Doyle tells us he’ll consider whether to run for Senate to succeed Shilling, but for now he’s leaning toward seeking re-election to his own seat.

Doyle says whoever runs on the Democratic ballot for Senate will have to appeal to the urban, suburban, and rural parts of the 32nd District.

Brad Williams

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.