Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district | |||
---|---|---|---|
Representative |
| ||
Area | 13,565.50 sq mi (35,134.5 km2) | ||
Distribution |
| ||
Population (2022) | 741,433 | ||
Median household income | $67,520 [1] | ||
Ethnicity |
| ||
Cook PVI | R+4 [3] |
Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district covers most of the Driftless Area in southwestern and western Wisconsin. The district includes the cities of Eau Claire, La Crosse, and Stevens Point, as well as many Wisconsin-based exurbs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. It borders the states of Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. Republican Derrick Van Orden has represented the district since 2023.
The political nature of the district is moderate, given its combination of an overall rural and suburban character counterbalanced by two significant urban centers (Eau Claire and La Crosse) and the Twin Cities suburbs. It historically elected moderate Republicans; before Ron Kind's 1996 victory, only two Democrats represented it in the 20th century. Al Gore, John Kerry, and Barack Obama all carried the district at the presidential level; it then narrowly voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and again in 2020 with slightly increased margins, as a result, the Cook Partisan Voting Index adjusted the district's partisan lean in 2021 from "even" to R+4.
# | County | Seat | Population |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Adams | Friendship | 20,875 |
11 | Buffalo | Alma | 13,302 |
17 | Chippewa | Chippewa Falls | 66,865 |
23 | Crawford | Prairie du Chien | 16,075 |
33 | Dunn | Menomonie | 45,547 |
35 | Eau Claire | Eau Claire | 106,452 |
43 | Grant | Lancaster | 52,110 |
53 | Jackson | Black River Falls | 21,121 |
57 | Juneau | Mauston | 26,802 |
63 | La Crosse | La Crosse | 120,433 |
81 | Monroe | Sparta | 46,193 |
91 | Pepin | Durand | 7,364 |
93 | Pierce | Ellsworth | 42,587 |
97 | Portage | Stevens Point | 70,468 |
103 | Richland | Richland Center | 17,212 |
121 | Trempealeau | Whitehall | 30,724 |
123 | Vernon | Viroqua | 30,915 |
141 | Wood | Wisconsin Rapids | 74,070 |
Member | Party | Years | Cong ress | Electoral history | District |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
District established March 4, 1849 | |||||
James Duane Doty (Menasha) | Democratic | March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1851 | 31st 32nd | Elected in 1848. Re-elected in 1850. Retired. | Brown, Calumet, Columbia, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Jefferson, Manitowoc, Marquette, Sheboygan, Washington, & Winnebago counties (& Door, Green Lake, Kewaunee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, & Waushara counties created from this territory during the 1850s) |
Independent Democratic | March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853 | ||||
John B. Macy (Fond du Lac) | Democratic | March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 | 33rd | Elected in 1852. Lost re-election. | |
Charles Billinghurst (Juneau) | Opposition | March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857 | 34th 35th | Elected in 1854. Re-elected in 1856. Lost re-election. | |
Republican | March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859 | ||||
Charles H. Larrabee (Horicon) | Democratic | March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861 | 36th | Elected in 1858. Lost re-election. | |
A. Scott Sloan (Beaver Dam) | Republican | March 4, 1861 – March 3, 1863 | 37th | Elected in 1860. Retired. | |
Amasa Cobb (Mineral Point) | Republican | March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1871 | 38th 39th 40th 41st | Elected in 1862. Re-elected in 1864. Re-elected in 1866. Re-elected in 1868. Retired. | Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, Richland, & Sauk counties |
J. Allen Barber (Lancaster) | Republican | March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1875 | 42nd 43rd | Elected in 1870. Re-elected in 1872. Retired. | |
Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, & Richland counties | |||||
Henry S. Magoon (Darlington) | Republican | March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877 | 44th | Elected in 1874. Lost renomination. | |
George Cochrane Hazelton (Boscobel) | Republican | March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883 | 45th 46th 47th | Elected in 1876. Re-elected in 1878. Re-elected in 1880. Lost renomination. | |
Burr W. Jones (Madison) | Democratic | March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885 | 48th | Elected in 1882. Lost re-election. | Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, & Lafayette counties |
Robert M. La Follette (Madison) | Republican | March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1891 | 49th 50th 51st | Elected in 1884. Re-elected in 1886. Re-elected in 1888. Lost re-election. | |
Allen R. Bushnell (Madison) | Democratic | March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1893 | 52nd | Elected in 1890. Retired. | |
Joseph W. Babcock (Necedah) | Republican | March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1907 | 53rd 54th 55th 56th 57th 58th 59th | Elected in 1892. Re-elected in 1894. Re-elected in 1896. Re-elected in 1898. Re-elected in 1900. Re-elected in 1902. Re-elected in 1904. Lost re-election. | Adams, Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties |
Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties | |||||
James William Murphy (Platteville) | Democratic | March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1909 | 60th | Elected in 1906. Lost re-election. | |
Arthur W. Kopp (Platteville) | Republican | March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1913 | 61st 62nd | Elected in 1908. Re-elected in 1910. Retired. | |
John M. Nelson (Madison) | Republican | March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1919 | 63rd 64th 65th | Redistricted from the 2nd district and re-elected in 1912. Re-elected in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Lost renomination. | Crawford, Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, & Richland counties |
James G. Monahan (Darlington) | Republican | March 4, 1919 – March 3, 1921 | 66th | Elected in 1918. Lost renomination. | |
John M. Nelson (Madison) | Republican | March 4, 1921 – March 3, 1933 | 67th 68th 69th 70th 71st 72nd | Elected in 1920. Re-elected in 1922. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1926. Re-elected in 1928. Re-elected in 1930. Lost renomination. | |
Gardner R. Withrow (La Crosse) | Republican | March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1935 | 73rd 74th 75th | Redistricted from the 7th district and re-elected in 1932. Re-elected in 1934. Re-elected in 1936. Lost re-election. | Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau, La Crosse, Lafayette, Monroe, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties |
Progressive | January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1939 | ||||
Harry W. Griswold (West Salem) | Republican | January 3, 1939 – July 4, 1939 | 76th | Elected in 1938. Died. | |
Vacant | July 4, 1939 – January 3, 1941 | ||||
William H. Stevenson (La Crosse) | Republican | January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1949 | 77th 78th 79th 80th | Elected in 1940. Re-elected in 1942. Re-elected in 1944. Re-elected in 1946. Lost renomination. | |
Gardner R. Withrow (La Crosse) | Republican | January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1961 | 81st 82nd 83rd 84th 85th 86th | Elected in 1948. Re-elected in 1950. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1958. Retired. | |
Vernon Wallace Thomson (Richland Center) | Republican | January 3, 1961 – December 31, 1974 | 87th 88th 89th 90th 91st 92nd 93rd | Elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Re-elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1970. Re-elected in 1972. Lost re-election and resigned early. | |
Buffalo, Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Lafayette, Monroe, Pepin, Pierce, Richland, Sauk, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties | |||||
Barron, Buffalo, Crawford, Dunn, Eau Claire, Grant, Jackson, La Crosse, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Richland, St. Croix, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties & most of Monroe County
| |||||
Vacant | December 31, 1974 – January 3, 1975 | 93rd | |||
Alvin Baldus (Menomonie) | Democratic | January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1981 | 94th 95th 96th | Elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Lost re-election. | |
Steve Gunderson (Osseo) | Republican | January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1997 | 97th 98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd 104th | Elected in 1980. Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Re-elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Retired. | |
Barron, Buffalo, Crawford, Dunn, Eau Claire, Grant, Jackson, La Crosse, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Richland, St. Croix, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties & most of Clark County , most of Grant County , southern of Polk County , & western of Richland County
| |||||
1993–2003 | |||||
Ron Kind (La Crosse) | Democratic | January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2023 | 105th 106th 107th 108th 109th 110th 111th 112th 113th 114th 115th 116th 117th | Elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Re-elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Retired. | |
2003–2013 | |||||
2013–2023 | |||||
Derrick Van Orden (Prairie du Chien) | Republican | January 3, 2023 – present | 118th | Elected in 2022. | 2023–present |
Year | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2002 [4] | Nov. 5 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 131,038 | 62.82% | Bill Arndt | Rep. | 69,955 | 33.54% | 208,581 | 61,083 |
Jeff Zastrow | Lib. | 6,674 | 3.20% | ||||||||
2004 [5] | Nov. 2 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 204,856 | 56.43% | Dale W. Schultz | Rep. | 157,866 | 43.49% | 363,008 | 46,990 |
2006 [6] | Nov. 7 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 163,322 | 64.79% | Paul R. Nelson | Rep. | 88,523 | 35.12% | 252,087 | 74,799 |
2008 [7] | Nov. 4 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 225,208 | 63.19% | Paul Stark | Rep. | 122,760 | 34.44% | 356,400 | 102,448 |
Kevin Barrett | Lib. | 8,236 | 2.31% | ||||||||
2010 [8] | Nov. 2 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 126,380 | 50.28% | Dan Kapanke | Rep. | 116,838 | 46.49% | 251,340 | 9,542 |
Michael Krsiean | Ind. | 8,001 | 3.18% |
Year | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2012 [9] | Nov. 6 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 217,712 | 64.08% | Ray Boland | Rep. | 121,713 | 35.82% | 339,764 | 95,999 |
2014 [10] | Nov. 4 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 155,368 | 56.46% | Tony Kurtz | Rep. | 119,540 | 43.44% | 275,161 | 35,828 |
Ken Van Doren (write-in) | Ind. | 128 | 0.05% | ||||||||
2016 [11] | Nov. 8 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 257,401 | 98.86% | Ryan Peterson (write-in) | Rep. | 169 | 0.06% | 260,370 | 254,601 |
2018 [12] | Nov. 6 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 187,888 | 59.65% | Steve Toft | Rep. | 126,980 | 40.31% | 314,989 | 60,908 |
2020 [13] | Nov. 3 | Ron Kind (inc) | Democratic | 199,870 | 51.30% | Derrick Van Orden | Rep. | 189,524 | 48.64% | 389,618 | 10,346 |
Year | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2022 [14] | Nov. 8 | Derrick Van Orden | Republican | 164,743 | 51.82% | Brad Pfaff | Dem. | 152,977 | 48.12% | 317,922 | 11,766 |
Year | Office | Results |
---|---|---|
2000 | President | Al Gore 49% – George W. Bush 46% |
2004 | President | John Kerry 51% – George W. Bush 48% |
2008 | President | Barack Obama 58% – John McCain 41% |
2012 | President | Barack Obama 54.8% – Mitt Romney 43.8% |
2014 | Governor | Scott Walker 50.1% – Mary Burke 48.52% |
2016 | President | Donald Trump 49.3% – Hillary Clinton 44.8% |
Senator | Ron Johnson 49.2% – Russ Feingold 47% | |
2018 | Senator | Tammy Baldwin 56.4% – Leah Vukmir 43.5% |
Governor | Tony Evers 49.8% – Scott Walker 47.9% | |
2020 | President | Donald Trump 52% - Joe Biden 46% |
2022 | Senator | Ron Johnson 52.8% – Mandela Barnes 47.1% |
Governor | Tony Evers 49.6% – Tim Michels 49.1% | |
2023 | Supreme | Janet Protasiewicz 55% – Daniel Kelly 45% |
Eau Claire County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 105,710. Its county seat is Eau Claire. The county took its name from the Eau Claire River.
Ronald James Kind is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district from 1997 to 2023. He is a member of the Democratic Party. His former district is in western Wisconsin, anchored by La Crosse, Eau Claire, Platteville, Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids, Prescott, and River Falls. Kind was the dean of Wisconsin's congressional delegation when he chose not to seek re-election in 2022.
Wisconsin's 1st congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in southeastern Wisconsin, covering Kenosha County, Racine County, and most of Walworth County, as well as portions of Rock County and Milwaukee County. The district's current Representative is Republican Bryan Steil.
Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in southern Wisconsin, covering Dane County, Iowa County, Lafayette County, Sauk County and Green County, as well as portions of Richland County and Rock County. The district includes Madison, the state's capital, its suburbs and some of the surrounding areas. Like many districts anchored by a college town, the district is heavily Democratic, and includes the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Wisconsin's 4th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in Wisconsin, encompassing a part of Milwaukee County and including almost all of the city of Milwaukee, as well as its working-class suburbs of Cudahy, St. Francis, South Milwaukee, and West Milwaukee. Recent redistricting has added the Milwaukee County North Shore communities of Glendale, Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, Fox Point, Bayside, and Brown Deer to the district. It is currently represented by Gwen Moore, a Democrat.
Wisconsin's 5th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in Wisconsin, covering most of Milwaukee's northern and western suburbs. It presently covers all of Washington and Jefferson counties, most of Waukesha County, and portions of Dodge, Milwaukee and Walworth counties. It is currently represented by Republican Scott Fitzgerald.
Wisconsin's 7th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in northwestern and central Wisconsin; it is the largest congressional district in the state geographically, covering 20 counties, for a total of 18,787 sq mi. The district contains the following counties: Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Burnett, St. Croix, Chippewa (partial), Clark, Douglas, Florence, Forest, Iron, Jackson (partial), Juneau (partial), Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Monroe (partial), Oneida, Polk, Price, Rusk, Sawyer, Taylor, Vilas, Washburn, and Wood (partial).
Wisconsin's 8th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in northeastern Wisconsin. It has been vacant since April 20, 2024, following the resignation of Mike Gallagher, a Republican. Gallagher won the open seat vacated by Reid Ribble who retired in 2016. It is also one of only two congressional districts to ever elect a Catholic priest, in the case of Wisconsin’s 8th, Robert John Cornell.
Jeffrey E. Smith is an American Democratic politician and former small business owner from Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 31st Senate district since 2019. He previously served two terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly, from 2007 to 2011.
Connor Theodore Hansen was an American lawyer, jurist, and Republican politician from Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He was a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for 13 years, from 1967 until 1980. Earlier in his career, he served as county judge and district attorney of Eau Claire County, and worked as a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation during World War II.
Bradley M. Pfaff is an American agriculture policy administrator and Democratic politician from La Crosse County, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing Wisconsin's 32nd Senate district since 2021. He was an unsuccessful candidate for United States House of Representatives in 2022.
The 2002 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002. Incumbent Republican Governor of Wisconsin Scott McCallum, who had assumed office upon the resignation of Tommy Thompson, ran for his first full term in office. McCallum won his party's nomination by defeating two minor candidates, and Attorney General of Wisconsin Jim Doyle won the Democratic primary with a little more than a third of the vote in a highly competitive primary election. In the general election, the presence of Ed Thompson, former Governor Tommy Thompson's younger brother, the Mayor of Tomah, and the Libertarian Party nominee, held both McCallum and Doyle to under fifty percent of the vote, enabling Doyle to win with 45% of the vote, defeating McCallum. As of 2022, this is the last gubernatorial election in which the Democratic candidate carried Taylor, Langlade, Marquette, Manitowoc, and Racine counties, and the last in which Juneau County did not vote for the Republican candidate, instead voting for Thompson.
Warren Petryk is an American Republican politician in the Wisconsin State Assembly. He has been a member of the Assembly since 2011, representing Pierce County, Pepin County, and parts of Eau Claire, Dunn, St. Croix, and Buffalo counties. He has been the Chair of Assembly Committee on Workforce Development since 2015.
Tyler August is an American politician and legislator. He is the majority leader of the Wisconsin State Assembly since 2023 and previously served as the chamber's speaker pro tempore. A Republican, he was first elected to the Assembly in 2010, representing eastern Walworth County.
Steven P. Doyle is an American lawyer and Democratic politician from La Crosse County, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the 94th Assembly district since May 2011. The 94th Assembly district covers most of La Crosse County outside of the city of La Crosse. He also serves on the La Crosse County board of supervisors, and was chairman from 2002 through 2011.
Wisconsin's 32nd Senate district is one of 33 districts in the Wisconsin Senate. Located in western Wisconsin, the district comprises all of La Crosse County and nearly all of Vernon County, along with parts of southwest Monroe County and southeast Trempealeau County. It includes the cities of La Crosse, Onalaska, Sparta, and Viroqua.
Lisa Kay Stark is an American judge, serving on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals since 2013. She has been Deputy Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals since 2015. Prior to the Court of Appeals, she was a Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for 15 years in Eau Claire County.
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Wisconsin were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the eight U.S. representatives from the state of Wisconsin, one from each of the state's eight congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. Primaries were held on August 9, 2022. The Republican Party won a majority of Wisconsin's U.S. House delegation as well as, notably, 55.5 percent of the statewide vote.
Marc Julian Bradley is an American businessman and Republican politician from Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 28th Senate district since 2021. He is the first black Republican to serve in the Wisconsin Senate and only the second black Republican to serve in the Wisconsin Legislature.
The 68th Assembly District of Wisconsin is one of 99 districts in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Located in northwestern Wisconsin, the district comprises all of Price and Rusk counties, and most of Chippewa and Taylor counties. It includes the cities of Bloomer, Cornell, Ladysmith, Park Falls, and Phillips, and the villages of Bruce, Catawba, Conrath, Gilman, Glen Flora, Hawkins, Ingram, Kennan, Lublin, Prentice, Rib Lake, Sheldon, Tony, and Weyerhaeuser. The district also contains Lake Wissota State Park, Brunet Island State Park, and Timms Hill—the highest natural point in the state of Wisconsin. The district is represented by Republican Karen Hurd, since January 2023.