Wisconsinites will vote for state Assembly and Senate candidates in a primary on Aug. 11 and in the general election Nov. 3, 2026.
This is the second election under newly-competitive district maps.
One Republican and one Democrat are running for Assembly District 64.
What do the Wisconsin Senate and Assembly do?
The Wisconsin Legislature is made up of 99 Assembly representatives and 33 senators from across Wisconsin. Together, they have the power to create, amend and repeal laws.
The Legislature plays a major role in deciding how to use taxpayer-funded state revenue every two years in the biennial budget. Whether more or less money is spent on education, economic development, tax relief — that is decided by the majority in the Legislature, along with Wisconsin's governor, who has to sign the budget, and other bills, into law.
What's at stake?
The Wisconsin Legislature has been firmly controlled by Republicans for more than a decade, under gerrymandered legislative maps.
Those maps were thrown out by the liberal-majority Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2023, which prompted the Legislature to approve new maps proposed by Gov. Tony Evers.
Democrats now have a chance of winning the majority in the Assembly, if they win a handful of competitive districts.
Republicans are likely to maintain their majority in the Assembly. According to JR Ross with WisPolitics.com, Democrats would have to sweep almost all of the "swing" seats and hold on to a few they won by the skin of their teeth in 2024, to have a chance of gaining a majority in the Assembly.
Assembly District 64
Assembly District 64 covers the northeast corner of Kenosha County, including all of the village of Somers and the northern half of the city of Kenosha.
The district is currently represented by Rep. Tip McGuire, who is running for reelection.
WUWM sent a questionnaire to each of the candidates, but neither responded. The information below is from public sources.
Tip McGuire (Democrat, incumbent)
McGuire's campaign website says he was special prosecutor for Kenosha County and an assistant district attorney in Milwaukee County. He was elected to the Assembly in 2019.
His top priorities include:
- Lowering costs for Wisconsin families
- Defending reproductive freedom
- Ensuring safer, healthier communities
- Strengthening public schools
Ed Hibsch (Republican)
On his Facebook page, Hibsch wrote: "I am running for Wisconsin State Assembly again because now more than ever, it is important to retain a conservative majority and continue to fight for working families. As a small business owner myself, I feel the impact of increasing taxes and bureaucratic overreach, resulting in unnecessary programs that waste money and are susceptible to fraud. I will bring a common sense approach to representing you in Madison. I appreciate your support in the November 3rd Fall election!!"
Hibsch challenged Democrat Tip McGuire for the District 64 Assembly seat in 2020, 2022 and 2024.
