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Robert Brooks (Wisconsin politician)

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Robert Brooks
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the 60th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 5, 2015
Preceded byDuey Stroebel
Chairman of the Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, Board of Supervisors
In office
April 2004 – April 2013
Preceded byGustav W. Wirth Jr.
Succeeded byLee Schlenvogt
Personal details
Born (1965-07-13) July 13, 1965 (age 59)
Rockford, Illinois, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseDawn
Children2
ResidenceSaukville, Wisconsin
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin–La Crosse
Website

Robert Brooks (born July 13, 1965) is an American businessman and Republican politician from Saukville, Wisconsin. He is state representative for the 60th district of the Wisconsin State Assembly, since January 2015.[1]

Biography

Born in Rockford, Illinois, Brooks moved with his parents to Wisconsin and graduated from Parkview High School in Orfordville, Wisconsin. He went on to attend the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse, but did not graduate. He went to work in the real estate business, and owned a number of restaurants, taverns, and rental properties. Since 1996, he has managed his real estate through Brooks Investment Group LLC.[2]

Political career

From 2002 through 2014, Brooks was an elected member of the Ozaukee County Board of Supervisors; he was chairman from 2004 through 2013. While serving on the county board, he was a commissioner on the South Eastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission and was a member of the board of directors of the Wisconsin Mutual Insurance Company.[3]

In 2014, incumbent State Representative Duey Stroebel announced he would run for United States House of Representatives rather than seek another term in the Assembly. Brooks jumped into the race for the open seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly. In the Republican primary, he defeated Jean Opitz, the wife of former State Representative David W. Opitz. He was unopposed in the general election, and went on to begin his term in January 2015.[4] He went on to win reelection in 2016 by a wide margin, with only an independent opponent.

In the 2017–2018 session of the Assembly, Brooks was elected by his caucus as the assistant majority leader. However, he ran into problems in 2018 when the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Brooks had made "sexual comments to two female state lawmakers and a racial remark to a Latina legislator".[5] Brooks attributed the comments to the influence of alcohol, apologized, and resigned his leadership position in the assembly.[6] Republican Governor Scott Walker, in the middle of his own reelection campaign, called for Brooks to resign from the Assembly.[7][8] Despite the pressure from inside his own party, Brooks resisted calls to resign and was reelected in the 2018 general election.[9]

He faced his first primary challenge as an incumbent in 2020, but Brooks prevailed again, taking 75% of the Republican primary vote. He was again unopposed in the 2020 general election.[10]

Electoral history

Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
2014 Primary[11] August 12 Robert Brooks Republican 4,791 58.03% Jean F. Opitz Republican 3,457 41.87% 8,256 1,334
General[12] November 4 Robert Brooks Republican 24,066 98.93% Perry Duman (write-in) Dem. 5 0.02% 24,326 23,811
2016 General[13] November 8 Robert Brooks (inc.) Republican 23,806 74.87% David Pelikan Ind. 7,895 24.83% 31,798 15,911
2018 General[9] November 8 Robert Brooks (inc.) Republican 20,702 64.86% Chris Rahlf Dem. 11,182 35.03% 31,920 9,520
2020 Primary[14] August 11 Robert Brooks (inc.) Republican 6,958 75.99% Chris Reimer Rep. 2,198 24.01% 9,156 4,760
General[10] November 3 Robert Brooks (inc.) Republican 28,853 96.77% 29,817 27,889

References

  1. ^ "State Representative Robert Brooks, 60th Assembly District". Wisconsin State Assembly. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  2. ^ "Assembly District 60 - Rob Brooks". Republican Assembly Campaign Committee. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  3. ^ "Biography". State Representative Robert Brooks. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  4. ^ "WI Uncontested". WKOW. November 4, 2014. Archived from the original on November 10, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.
  5. ^ Marley, Patrick; Beck, Molly; Bice, Daniel (September 26, 2018). "Wisconsin Assembly Republican leader apologizes for making racial, sexual comments to female lawmakers". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  6. ^ Bauer, Scott (September 26, 2018). "Saukville republican resigns leadership position, not office after racist, sexual comments". WISN-TV. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  7. ^ Johnson, Shawn (September 26, 2018). "Walker Calls On Rep. Rob Brooks To Resign Following Report Of Racial, Sexual Remarks". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  8. ^ Governor Walker [@GovWalker] (September 26, 2018). "Representative Brooks' comments are offensive and disrespectful. They have no place in our society and are inconsistent with the high standards that must be held by those in public office. He should resign from office, period" (Tweet). Retrieved January 20, 2021 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ a b Canvass Results for 2018 General Election - 11/6/2018 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. February 22, 2019. p. 24. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Canvass Results for 2020 General Election - 11/3/2020 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 18, 2020. p. 22. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  11. ^ Canvass Results for 2014 Fall Partisan Primary - 8/12/2014 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. August 29, 2014. p. 39. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  12. ^ Canvass Results for 2014 General Election - 11/4/2014 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. November 26, 2014. p. 22. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  13. ^ Canvass Results for 2016 General Election - 11/8/2016 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. December 22, 2016. p. 22. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  14. ^ Canvass Results for 2020 Partisan Primary - 8/11/2020 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. August 26, 2020. p. 38. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
Wisconsin State Assembly
Preceded by Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 60th district
January 5, 2015 – present 		Incumbent
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