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Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg loses reelection bid
Wisconsin Public Radio ^ | APRIL 2, 2024 | ROB MENTZER

Posted on 04/03/2024 1:26:04 PM PDT by Zhang Fei

Wausau voters ousted Mayor Katie Rosenberg, electing conservative challenger Doug Diny with 52 percent of the vote.

Wausau spent millions modifying a new water treatment facility after testing in 2022 found all city wells contained elevated PFAS levels. The city instituted new filtration systems in early 2023, but facility costs led to skyrocketing water bills that became an issue in the local race.

Diny, who was elected to Wausau City Council in 2020, won 5,222 votes to Rosenberg’s 4,798.

Like many local races, the nominally nonpartisan race was characterized by ideological spending on both sides. According to WisPolitics, the state Democratic Party spent $191,000 in ad buys supporting Rosenberg. Diny spent about $92,000 on ads, according to the site, and received $21,800 in donations from the Marathon County Republican Party. Diny also benefited from mailers by the Wisconsinites for Liberty Fund and other sources that attacked Rosenberg.

In his own ads, Diny attacked Rosenberg over “unaffordable water and housing.”

Rosenberg, 40, went viral following her election in 2020 when she tweeted “Holy balls!” in response to her victory. A frequent host of Democratic politicians like Gov. Tony Evers and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, she was considered a rising star in Democratic circles and a potential candidate for lieutenant governor in 2022. Diny’s victory was an upset.

With about 40,000 residents, Wausau is the largest city in north central Wisconsin. It is a population hub for the mostly rural 7th Congressional District, which as a whole is heavily Republican. It is the county seat of Marathon County, which consistently votes Republican. But the city of Wausau itself is Democratic-leaning and voted for Joe Biden in 2020.

In statements Tuesday night, Rosenberg and Diny thanked their supporters.

“There’s still a lot of work that the next stewards of our city will need to continue,” Rosenberg wrote on social media. “I hope you can support them.”

In his statement, Diny also thanked Rosenberg for her service, and said, “I want every Wausonian to know that I will be a mayor for all.”


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Wisconsin
KEYWORDS: 2024; wausau; wi; wisconsin
Middle of the road WI city that voted Biden in 2020 ousts its Democrat mayor, who narrowly beat a Republican incumbent in 2020. She won by 5% in 2020, lost this one by 4%.
1 posted on 04/03/2024 1:26:05 PM PDT by Zhang Fei
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To: Zhang Fei
"OH, balls"

-Former Mayor Katie Rosenberg.

2 posted on 04/03/2024 1:44:48 PM PDT by blackdog ((Z28.310) Be careful what you say. Your refrigerator may be listening & reporting you.)
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To: Zhang Fei

Dems didn’t want to spend the $$$ to cheat


3 posted on 04/03/2024 1:47:06 PM PDT by AppyPappy (Biden told Al Roker "America is back". Unfortunately, he meant back to the 1970's)
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To: Zhang Fei

UNLeSS they moved it-—Wausau. is also the site of the state Prison.


4 posted on 04/03/2024 3:05:25 PM PDT by ridesthemiles (not giving up on TRUMP---EVER)
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To: Zhang Fei

Less than 10,000 votes in a city of 40,000.

No wonder the country is dying.


5 posted on 04/03/2024 3:09:13 PM PDT by Fledermaus (Is it me, or all of a sudden have the buried trolls come out on FR like cicadas? It's all noise.)
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To: ridesthemiles

Are you thinking Waupun, south of Fond du Lac on H151?


6 posted on 04/03/2024 3:35:21 PM PDT by PfromHoGro (Orwell was optimistic.)
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To: Zhang Fei

Good news for our side; bad news for the leftists and FR’s gloom and doom surrender monkeys.


7 posted on 04/03/2024 4:12:06 PM PDT by sergeantdave (AI training involves stealing content from creators and not paying them a penny)
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To: sergeantdave

[Good news for our side; bad news for the leftists and FR’s gloom and doom surrender monkeys.]


Trump is a spoilt child who won’t make nice with the other kids. He is Michael Mourdock or Roy Moore with a lot more cash - able to win primaries, but not necessarily popular majorities.

But we are in an exceptional election year. Biden won narrowly in 2020 - by 4%, but he’s governing like he’s FDR, like he won by 18%. He has jumped, not the shark, but its extinct 30x as large predecessor, the megalodon. And the polls that always showed Biden ahead by double digits for much of 2020 ended with him up 8%, but he only won by 4%.

If this holds for 2024, I’d subtract 4% from any Biden number this year. And Trump has always either been behind or ahead low single digits this cycle. In 2016, Trump lost the popular vote by 2%, beat Hillary. If Biden doesn’t poll more than 6% ahead of Trump, the race is Trump’s to lose.

https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/president/general/2020/trump-vs-biden
https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/president/general/2024/trump-vs-biden

Unless Trump is caught in bed with a live boy or a dead girl, he should pulverize Biden.


8 posted on 04/03/2024 4:42:08 PM PDT by Zhang Fei (My dad had a Delta 88. That was a car. It was like driving your living room)
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To: Fledermaus

Less than 10,000 votes in a city of 40,000.

No wonder the country is dying.

I am surprised they got that many votes in a March election.


9 posted on 04/03/2024 6:24:38 PM PDT by Steven Scharf
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To: sergeantdave

Good news for our side; bad news for the leftists and FR’s gloom and doom surrender monkeys.

Actually it appears not to be a liberal/conservative litmus test, but rather a referendum on the management of the water systems which should never be political. They mayor had no control over the costs of building or the results of the water testing.

Wausau will be reliably democrat in November.

The city is the hub of a long time Hmong (1970s Cambodian refugees) community which should be conservative, but has been brainwashed by the dems. If the republicans would begin crafting messages that speaks to their issues, than they could be won over.


10 posted on 04/03/2024 6:29:46 PM PDT by Steven Scharf
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To: Steven Scharf

[Wausau will be reliably democrat in November.]


I wouldn’t be so sure. The Democrats spent $40 per vote, 2x the GOP number, and still lost. Biden spent $15 per vote in 2020. This was an expensive race where the Dems did not stint on resources. But they lost anyway. The margin was narrow, but the iceberg lying just below the surface - abortion - seems not to have clinched it for the Democrats.


11 posted on 04/03/2024 7:58:03 PM PDT by Zhang Fei (My dad had a Delta 88. That was a car. It was like driving your living room)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin; Zhang Fei

Wisconsin’s was an expensive race where the Dems did not stint on resources but still lost.
<><>Democrats spent $40 per vote, 2x what the GOP spent,
<><>Dems still lost which is very telling in political circles.
<><>2020 Biden spent $15 per vote.

Also considered a responding topic in political derbies.......the iceberg lying just below the surface - abortion - seems not to have been the clincher Democrats are counting on.(Zhang Fei provided details)


12 posted on 04/04/2024 3:56:35 AM PDT by Liz (This then is how we should pray: Our Father wIho art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. )
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To: Liz

I’m hopeful for Wisconsin delivering a WIN to President in Exile Trump - AGAIN!

Just THIS WEEK we added TWO Constitutional Amendments that our current Socialist Governor can’t touch.

One - NO MORE ZUCKERBUCKS. No outside money is allowed into the election process.

Two - Only ELECTED OFFICIALS can run our elections, so again, no ‘outside help’ which is what the Zuckerbucks BOUGHT which turned a number of counties Blue when people really voted Red.

Hopeful. Optimistic. But, still a REALIST when it comes to the sleazy dealings of Socialist Democrats.


13 posted on 04/04/2024 7:32:04 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

Great amendments. Looking good.


14 posted on 04/04/2024 10:32:38 AM PDT by Liz (This then is how we should pray: Our Father wIho art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. )
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