‘Chaos, confusion and disruption’: 3 Republicans, 2 incumbents, face off in 86th Assembly District

Reps. Donna Rozar and John Spiros were each drawn into the 86th Assembly District under new legislative maps signed into law in February. Now they will face each other and a dairy farmer in a three-way Republican primary.

The winner on Aug. 13 is likely to secure the seat given the district’s voters have favored Republicans by a more than 20-point margin, based on previous election results. Democrat John Small awaits the winner on Nov. 5.

The central Wisconsin district covers half of Wood County and parts of Marathon County and includes the cities of Marshfield and Pittsville, as well as villages like Edgar, Spencer and Stratford.

Spiros said he is the incumbent, having represented the 86th since 2013. But constituents whom Rozar currently represents in the 69th make up nearly half of the newly drawn district, and only a quarter were previously represented by Spiros. Rozar says the result has been “chaos, confusion and disruption.”

“Why would I not run? These are my people,” Rozar told Wisconsin Watch. “It is not the old 86th, and that’s why I decided to run.” 

Both incumbents say that while knocking on doors, they have met constituents who are confused about the 2024 redistricting, which drew portions of four previous districts into the new 86th. 

“As Representative Rozar continues to talk about percentages, I’m talking about speaking to voters and working to get reelected,” Spiros told Wisconsin Watch. “To me, that’s more important than worrying about what percentage it is.” 

The Republican primary gives voters something more than incumbency to base their decision.

Spiros, a former police officer, has authored legislation largely related to law enforcement and public safety, including a bill signed into law that increases protections for railroad maintenance workers. He authored bipartisan bills signed into law that closed loopholes in state statutes and criminalized sexual misconduct against students in schools, as well as a bill that now requires increased transparency of decisions made by the Wisconsin Parole Commission. 

Rozar, a former nurse educator who was elected to the Assembly in 2020, has authored legislation largely related to health care and abortion. Though unsuccessful, she introduced a bill that would have extended postpartum women’s eligibility under the Medical Assistance program. She also introduced a 14-week abortion ban that passed in the Assembly but went no further, later adding amendments to include exceptions for rape and incest. 

“This is a pro-life district, there’s no doubt about it,” Rozar said. “I have done doors where people are upset at me for signing onto that bill (because they wanted abortion banned sooner).” 

Trine Spindler, R-Stratford, is a dairy farmer who leads a chapter of Farmland First, a group that opposes wind and solar energy complexes that energy companies seek to build on fertile farmland in central Wisconsin. Spindler said she is building her campaign for the 86th “from the ground up” as opposed to the district’s two “established” incumbents. 

“The way farmland is being used matters to a lot of us,” Spindler said of those in the district. “We’re dairy farmers, so we talk to a lot of other dairy farmers, and the fact that land price is going to be driven up by this is a huge problem.” 

Spindler organized along with over a dozen townships in Marathon County to help pass health and safety ordinances that fight the industrial developments. But Spindler says this issue needs representation in the state Capitol, where wind and solar rules are controlled by the Public Service Commission. 

“We’ve been asking for help left and right, and nobody’s been interested in helping us forward,” Spindler said. “If nobody’s willing to represent us in Madison, we will take it all the way.” 

This article first appeared on Wisconsin Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.