By Kim McDarison

The League of Women Voters Whitewater Area will be hosting a forum focusing on candidates running in Assembly District 43.

Two candidates, Brienne Brown, D-Whitewater, and Scott Johnson, R-Jefferson, have come forward to vie for the open seat.

The event will be held Saturday, Oct. 5, between 9:30 and 11 a.m., in the first floor Municipal Center Community Room of the Whitewater Municipal Building, 312 W. Whitewater St.

About the candidates: Johnson

Johnson currently represents Assembly District 33.

Following the state’s redistricting in February, the candidate has chosen to run in the 43rd district.

The district includes a portion of Jefferson County, including the town of Cold Spring and the city of Whitewater, among other areas within Rock and Walworth counties. 

In his role as the Assembly District 33 representative, Johnson assumed office in January of 2023. His term ends in January of 2025. Johnson defeated incumbent Democrat Don Vruwink to win the seat. After redistricting in February, Johnson is choosing to run in the new District 43, a legislative aide working in Johnson’s office, Kevin Vesperman, said. The candidate will move into the 43rd District should he be elected in November, Vesperman noted, which, he stressed, is the requirement. He said the candidate, would he make the move, “has several options, including the old homestead,” which, he said was in a rural area near Janesville and Milton. Both communities, in part or whole, are included in the district.

In 2024, Johnson emerged victoriously after facing Republican challenger Dylan Kurtz during the August primary.

Johnson’s campaign website is here: https://www.scottforassembly.com/.

The candidate’s announcement on WhitewaterWise.com of his intention to run for a seat in the 43rd District is here: https://whitewaterwise.com/scott-johnson-announces-candidacy-for-43rd-state-assembly-district-seat-district-includes-whitewater/.

About the candidates: Brown

Brown, too, emerged victoriously in the August primary after facing write-in candidates.

Brown last ran for a seat in the district in 2022, losing that bid to Republican candidate Ellen Schutt, R-Clinton, who is the current office holder in Assembly District 31. She assumed office in January of 2023. Her term ends in January of 2025.

Schutt was disqualified from the Republican primary scheduled in August of 2024. She announced publicly that she did not intent to run. 

Brown’s campaign website is here: https://brienneforwisconsin.com/.

The candidate’s announcement on WhitewaterWise.com of her intention to run for a seat in the 43rd District is here: https://whitewaterwise.com/brienne-brown-announces-candidacy-for-43rd-state-assembly-district-seat-district-includes-whitewater/. 

About redistricting

An earlier Fort Atkinson Online story, offering an understanding of redistricting as it affected the cities of Fort Atkinson and Whitewater, enacted as law by Gov. Tony Evers in February, is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/evers-signs-into-law-new-legislative-maps/. The story includes a chronology of redistricting as it affects Assembly districts 33, 38, 31, 43, and 46, and state Senate districts 11, 15, and 16. Fort Atkinson Online and WhitewaterWise are sister publications.