Wisconsin Watch

Shannon Mingalone, left, and Eve Mingalone are seen in their hoop house at their business Ramshackle Farm in Harvard, Illinois, on Oct. 19, 2022. The couple started their small growing operation in 2021, after moving to the area from Colorado. They grow lettuce and Asian greens over the winter using hydroponic farming techniques. They also have 50 raised beds outside, and a hoop house for growing vegetables indoors during the winter. Shannon said she found the local queer community surprisingly amazing. The farm is named after one of Shannon’s favorite bands, Ramshackle Glory. The couple has two children, Adelaide, 5, and Klein, 3.

Queering the family farm: Despite obstacles, LGBTQ farmers find fertile ground in Midwest

Mallory Cheng

Although they go largely unrecognized and face barriers, Midwestern LGBTQ farmers persist as they reframe the image of the family farm.

Democrats won the 14th Assembly District this year by 27 points after Wisconsin Republicans redrew it to ensure they could win back the 13th Assembly District.

Wisconsin’s Assembly maps are more skewed than ever. What happens now?

Wisconsin Watch

Gerrymandering continues to present a problem for Democrats and democracy in Wisconsin, but Republicans are unlikely to address the issue anytime soon.

A reverse osmosis filtration system is seen under the kitchen sink of town of Campbell, Wis., supervisor Lee Donahue on July 20, 2022. Donahue’s household is among more than 1,350 on French Island that have received free bottled water from the city of La Crosse and the state. Donahue initially installed the system but is concerned that it doesn’t do a sufficient job of removing PFAS, so she no longer uses it.

What should I do about PFAS in my water?

Wisconsin Watch

A consumer guide for dealing with harmful PFAS being detected nationwide, including Wisconsin.

We Energies plans to close its two coal-fired power plants in Oak Creek, Wis., in the next few years. The company is seeking approval for a rate hike from the Wisconsin Public Service Commission to help pay for the utility’s transition to cleaner and more renewable energy sources, including solar and natural gas.

Wisconsin case raises question: Who pays, profits from energy transition?

Wisconsin Watch

Critics say a proposed rate hike by We Energies for new solar and natural gas generation pits low-income residents against clean energy advocates, taking too much profit for shareholders.

Poll worker Kathleen Krchnavek works the Olbrich Gardens polling site in Madison, Wis., on Feb. 16, 2021. With political polarization reaching a fever pitch, front line election workers are reporting novel challenges and hostility that years ago had been unthinkable.

Wisconsin clerks face challenges as voter skepticism becomes new reality

Wisconsin Watch

Ahead of midterm elections, the GOP has signed up more than 5,000 election workers, three times as many as 2020, in response to demand for ballot scrutiny.

From left, Tahera Sultani, Mahrukh Delawarzad, Manizha Nazari and Shekiba Sultani are Afghan evacuees who fled their country in 2021 and are now studying at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Due to a miscommunication, the women thought they were being offered full scholarships to pursue their bachelor’s degrees and are now scrambling to raise enough money to pay for college. Photo taken Aug. 3, 2022.

They escaped the Taliban. Now these women in Wisconsin face a new foe: the high cost of college

Wisconsin Watch

Ten female students at the UW-Milwaukee thought they had full scholarships. Now the Afghan evacuees are scrambling to pay for school.

Wisconsin districts seek solutions as school lunch quality comes under fire

Wisconsin Watch

‘I just couldn’t bring myself to eat it’: National supply chain and labor shortages have led to worse meals — and a new push to go local.

After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federally protected constitutional right to an abortion, physicians like Dr. Sarah Goetz scrambled to determine how to provide life-saving procedures without risking a felony. Goetz, an obstetrician and gynecologist pictured in her clinic office in Marshfield, cares for patients all across rural northeast Wisconsin.

Wisconsin’s ban allows only life-saving ‘therapeutic abortions.’ No one knows what that means

Wisconsin Watch

Physicians criticize the law as outdated, vague and severe. Health systems are scrambling to guide them on how to stay out of criminal trouble.

Erick Kaardal delivers remarks to members of the Wisconsin Assembly elections committee at the State Capitol in Madison, Wis., on March 1, 2022. Kaardal and the nonprofit law firm, Thomas More Society, are playing unofficial but central roles in the ongoing investigation into Wisconsin’s 2020 presidential election.

'Blurring of lines:' Private lawyer plays starring role in taxpayer-funded Wisconsin election probe

Wisconsin Watch

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Gableman, are collaborating on the $676,000 investigation into alleged election fraud launched by GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos. Although he lacks a contract or official role in Gableman’s taxpayer-funded investigation, Kaardal has become a de facto lead investigator. A Wisconsin Watch analysis shows roughly half of the chapters in Gableman’s 136-page interim report are based on Kaardal’s work.

Sylvia Wilson, the program director for the nonprofit Teens Grow Greens, is seen at the organization’s greenhouse in Milwaukee on Dec. 14, 2021. Milwaukee Area Technical College partners with Teens Grow Greens to offer college credit to high school students who work with the program.

MATC broadens access for Milwaukee students amid historical inequities, dropping enrollment

Wisconsin Watch

Milwaukee Area Technical College offers free tuition, debt forgiveness, early credit to make college cheaper and more available to a diverse student population.