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Brian Rude

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Brian D. Rude
President of the Wisconsin Senate
In office
April 21, 1998 – January 4, 1999
Preceded byFred Risser
Succeeded byFred Risser
In office
April 20, 1993 – July 9, 1996
Preceded byFred Risser
Succeeded byFred Risser
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 32nd district
In office
April 23, 1984 – May 25, 2000
Preceded byPaul Offner
Succeeded byMark Meyer
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the 36th district
In office
January 3, 1983 – April 23, 1984
Preceded byLloyd H. Kincaid
Succeeded byJohn Volk
Personal details
Born (1955-08-25) August 25, 1955 (age 69)
Viroqua, Wisconsin, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Karen Ann Thulin
​
(m. 1981)​
Children2
Education
OccupationPolitician, lobbyist

Brian David Rude (born August 25, 1955) is a retired American businessman, lobbyist, and Republican politician from Vernon County, Wisconsin. He was a member of the Wisconsin Senate for 16 years and served as president of the Senate for most of the 1993–1994 and 1995–1996 terms, and part of the 1997–1998 term. He also served a year in the Wisconsin State Assembly. After leaving government, he worked as a lobbyist for 20 years for Dairyland Power Cooperative.

Early life and career

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Brian Rude was born in Viroqua, Wisconsin, on August 25, 1955. He was raised in Westby, Wisconsin, and graduated from Westby High School in 1973. He went on to earn his bachelor's degree in history and political science from Luther College, in Iowa, in 1977. As a young man, he worked as a legislative aide and research analyst in the Iowa Senate and Wisconsin Senate.[1] He began graduate school studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, but put his studies on hold in 1981, when he was employed in corporate communications for Trane. He ultimately remained at Trane until resigning to become a full-time legislator in 1985.[2]

In these early years, he became involved in local affairs as chairman of the Kickapoo Valley Association—formed 20 years earlier to support a flood control project in the Kickapoo River valley, by the 1980s it was more for tourism advertisement. He was also active in the local Junior Chamber of Commerce.[2]

Political career

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He first ran for public office in 1982, following the drastic 1982 court-ordered redistricting of the Wisconsin Legislature.[3] He defeated two opponents in the Republican Party primary, and went on to win the general election with 57% of the vote.[4]

A year after taking office, the incumbent state senator in his district, Paul Offner, announced he would resign with a year left in his term.[5] In January 1984, Rude entered the special election contest to replace him in the Wisconsin Senate. He defeated county supervisor Douglas Farmer in the Republican primary and went on to face La Crosse state representative John Medinger in the general election.[6] After the primary, Rude cast himself as an independent republican, and attempted to make the election a referendum on the performance of Governor Tony Earl.[7] In a tight contest, Rude prevailed by just 698 votes, receiving 50.4% in the April special election.[6] That fall, he won a full four-year term, defeating the other incumbent state representative in the district, Virgil Roberts, and increasing his vote share to 54%.[6]

He went on to win three more four-year terms in the Senate, receiving more than 60% in each of those elections.[8][9][10] In 1989, he moved into a leadership position in the Republican caucus when he was elected assistant minority leader in the Senate. He continued in that role until April 1993, when Republicans gained the majority and Rude was elected president of the Senate. He continued as president until Republicans lost the majority due to a 1996 recall election, but regained the office briefly in 1998 after another special election.[11] Rude was considered a moderate Republican in the Senate and often played an important dealmaker role in the closely-divided state capital.[12]

In the early 1990s, Rude completed his graduate studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, earning his M.A.[1] He announced his retirement from the Legislature in 2000, leaving office in May, with seven months left in his term. At the time of his resignation, he received bipartisan accolades; Democratic U.S. representative Ron Kind referred to him as a role model.[13]

Later years

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Immediately after leaving the Senate, Rude went to work as vice president of external relations for Dairyland Power Cooperative—an energy cooperative serving much of the Driftless Area of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota. He lobbied on behalf of the cooperative for the next 20 years, retiring in 2020. While working for Dairyland Power, he was also appointed to serve on the Wisconsin Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection Board by Governor Jim Doyle.[14]

Personal life and family

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Brian Rude married Karen Ann Thulin, a registered nurse from Platteville, on October 24, 1981. They met while students at Luther College.[15] They have two adult sons and still reside in Coon Valley, Wisconsin. Their son, Nels Rude, is a prolific lobbyist in Madison with the Kammer group.[16]

Rude has also been active in many state and local community organizations in addition to his political activity. He has served as Chair of the Greater La Crosse Chamber of Commerce, Chair of the Board of Aptiv, and President of the Norwegian-American Historical Association. He was active for many years on the Wisconsin Historical Society's governing board of curators, and in 2016 was elected president of the board.[17] Rude is currently chair of the Board of Trustees of Vesterheim Museum in Decorah, Iowa.

Electoral history

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Wisconsin Assembly (1982)

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Wisconsin Assembly, 36th District Election, 1982[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Primary, September 14, 1982
Republican Brian D. Rude 2,818 50.04%
Republican Janet S. Schipper 2,477 43.99%
Republican Jeffrey D. Knickmeier 336 5.97%
Plurality 341 6.06%
Total votes 5,631 100.0%
General Election, November 2, 1982
Republican Brian D. Rude 9,993 57.62%
Democratic Henry Hendrickson 7,350 42.38%
Plurality 2,643 15.24%
Total votes 13,981 100.0%
Republican gain from Democratic

Wisconsin Senate (1984–1996)

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Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
1984[6]
special 		Special
Primary 		Feb. 21 Brian D. Rude Republican 6,807 64.97% Douglas L. Farmer Rep. 2,966 28.31% 6,442 1,294
Douglas L. Farmer Rep. 352 0.89%
Special Apr. 3 Brian D. Rude Republican 20,037 50.44% John Medinger Dem. 19,339 48.68% 39,728 698
Suzanne T. Kuring Lib. 352 0.89%
1984[6] General Nov. 6 Brian D. Rude (inc) Republican 35,331 54.19% Virgil Roberts Dem. 29,866 45.81% 65,197 5,465
1988[8] General Nov. 8 Brian D. Rude (inc) Republican 45,384 72.20% John Lindner Dem. 17,471 27.80% 62,855 27,913
1992[9] General Nov. 3 Brian D. Rude (inc) Republican 46,778 63.89% Diane Leslie Snyder Dem. 26,440 36.11% 73,218 20,338
1996[10] General Nov. 5 Brian D. Rude (inc) Republican 49,357 75.10% David Wulf Dem. 16,364 24.90% 65,721 32,993

References

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  1. ^ a b "Rude, Brian D. 1955". Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Brian Rude of Westby candidate for Assembly". The Boscobel Dial. July 8, 1982. p. 11. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  3. ^ Wisconsin State AFL-CIO v. Elections Board, 543 F. Supp. 630 (E.D. Wis. June 9, 1982).
  4. ^ a b Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V., eds. (1983). "Biographies". The State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1983–1984 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 889, 911. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  5. ^ "Offner to resign". Manitowoc Herald-Times. December 21, 1983. p. 1. Retrieved December 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b c d e Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V., eds. (1985). "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1985–1986 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 902, 903, 921, 922. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  7. ^ Achterberg, Gary (January 5, 1984). "Rude sees election hinging on issues". La Crosse Tribune. p. 1. Retrieved December 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b Barish, Lawrence S.; Theobald, H. Rupert, eds. (1989). "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1989–1990 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 907, 922. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Barish, Lawrence S.; Theobald, H. Rupert, eds. (1993). "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1993–1994 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 900, 919. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  10. ^ a b Barish, Lawrence S.; Meloy, Patricia E., eds. (1997). "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin Blue Book 1997–1998 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 888, 890. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  11. ^ "Statistics and Reference: Historical Lists" (PDF). Wisconsin Blue Book 2023–2024 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. 2023. p. 492. ISBN 978-1-7333817-2-7. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  12. ^ "Sen. Brian Rude: a real class act". La Crosse Tribune. May 28, 2000. p. 22. Retrieved December 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Rude's resignation leaves other politicians with eye on his post". La Crosse Tribune. May 26, 2000. p. 1. Retrieved December 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Brian Rude". Dairyland Power Cooperative. Archived from the original on 2007-02-05.
  15. ^ "Thulin–Rude". La Crosse Tribune. November 12, 1981. p. 10. Retrieved December 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "2023-2024 Legislative Session - Nels Rude". Wisconsin Lobbying. Wisconsin Ethics Commission. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  17. ^ "Rude appointed as president to the Wisconsin Historical Society Board of Curators". La Crosse Tribune. September 7, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
Wisconsin State Assembly
Preceded by Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 36th district
January 3, 1983 – April 23, 1984 		Succeeded by
Wisconsin Senate
Preceded by Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 32nd district
April 23, 1984 – May 25, 2000 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Wisconsin Senate
April 20, 1993 – July 9, 1996 		Succeeded by
Fred Risser
Preceded by
Fred Risser
 President of the Wisconsin Senate
April 21, 1998 – January 4, 1999 		Succeeded by
Fred Risser
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