Redistricting Hurts Republican Suder in Race Against Knoff

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The Assembly Majority Leader, Republican Scott Suder, is facing his toughest race in years with a well-known opponent and a new legislative map that brings more Democrats into his district.

Scott Suder has represented central Wisconsin’s 69th Assembly District since 1998.Two years ago, he didn’t even have a Democratic opponent.This year, he faces a strong challenger in former radio newsman Paul Knoff, and a new map that putsa big chunk of Marshfield, and its Democratic voters, into Suder’s Republican leaning district. “It is clearly more advantageous to my opponent in terms of pure numbers,” he says.

Knoff agrees, “Marshfield, when we look at the numbers, does help us.As much as I didn’t like the redistricting process, it certainly does help us.”

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Both of the candidates are knocking on doors trying to persuade Marshfield voters. Knoff is telling them about some conservative positions he’s taken on Governor Walker.

“I was somebody that wasn’t gung ho about the recall,” he says.”I didn’t sign the recall petition.”

And, on Walker’s collective bargaining law, Act 10.Knoff serves on the Granton School Board, and he says there will be problems if the law doesn’t stand. “Now if Act 10 is taken off the books, if we have to retroactively go back and maybe pay a different amount for wages and benefits, that’s going to have a very crippling effect on our schools and our local municipalities.”

Republican ScottSuder voted for Act 10, and he doesn’t believe Democrat Paul Knoff really supports it.

“I absolutely stand by my vote,” he says.”I’m still waiting.I’ve asked time after time for my opponent to say, if there was an up or down vote to repeal Act 10 which I’m sure someone will come up with, would he vote to repeal Act 10?And he refuses to take a stand.And that’s his choice.”

When the voters make their choice tomorrow, we’ll see if the Republican drawn map, in this one district, ends up helping the other party.

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