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Doug La Follette

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Doug La Follette
28th and 30th Secretary of State of Wisconsin
In office
January 3, 1983 – March 17, 2023
GovernorTony Earl
Tommy Thompson
Scott McCallum
Jim Doyle
Scott Walker
Tony Evers
Preceded byVel Phillips
Succeeded bySarah Godlewski
In office
January 6, 1975 – January 3, 1979
GovernorPatrick Lucey
Martin J. Schreiber
Preceded byRobert C. Zimmerman
Succeeded byVel Phillips
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 22nd district
In office
January 1, 1973 – January 6, 1975
Preceded byJoseph Lourigan
Succeeded byJohn J. Maurer
Personal details
Born (1940-06-06) June 6, 1940 (age 84)
Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationMarietta College (BS)
Stanford University (MS)
Columbia University (PhD)
Scientific career
FieldsOrganic chemistry
InstitutionsUniversity of Wisconsin–Parkside
ThesisIntramolecular Solvation (1967)
Doctoral advisorRonald Breslow

Douglas J. La Follette (born June 6, 1940) is an American academic, environmental scientist, and politician who served as the 30th secretary of state of Wisconsin from 1983 to 2023. He is a member of the Democratic Party. At the time of his retirement, La Follette was the longest-serving statewide elected official (excluding U.S. senators) in the United States; he was narrowly re-elected in 2022 to an unprecedented 12th term in office, but retired shortly after the start of the new term.[1] He previously served as the 28th secretary of state from 1975 to 1979, and in the Wisconsin Senate from 1973 to 1975.

Early life and career

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A distant relative of the prominent Wisconsin La Follette family, La Follette was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Marietta College, his Master of Science in chemistry from Stanford University, and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Columbia University. He began a teaching career as an assistant professor at University of Wisconsin–Parkside in Kenosha. La Follette also served as a research associate at University of Wisconsin–Madison. He also owned a small business.[2]

Known as an environmentalist before running for public office, he was a Wisconsin organizer of the first Earth Day for Gaylord Nelson in 1970 and co-founded Wisconsin's Environmental Decade (now known as Clean Wisconsin) with Peter Anderson.[3]

His great-grandfather has been described as an uncle of Robert "Fighting Bob" La Follette[4][5] by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Chemical & Engineering News, while Dissent Magazine referred to the great-grandfather as Robert La Follette's brother.[6] WKOW News and WEAU News state that Robert La Follette was Doug's great-uncle.[7][8] Robert's grandson, former Wisconsin Attorney General Bronson La Follette, has described Doug La Follette as a "second cousin, three times removed" from Robert La Follette.[9] Alternatively, Milwaukee Magazine has noted Doug as a first cousin three times removed of Robert La Follette.[10] According to professor and author Nancy Unger, Doug is a third cousin of Bronson.[11] Doug went on to serve with Bronson from 1975 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1987.

Political career

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La Follette first ran for office in the 1970 U.S. House of Representatives election, losing to Les Aspin in the Democratic primary for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district. La Follette served in the Wisconsin State Senate for Kenosha in 1973 and 1974.[12]

La Follette was elected Secretary of State of Wisconsin in 1974. He unsuccessfully ran for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin on a ticket with Governor Martin Schreiber in 1978. In 1982, he was again elected secretary of state, defeating incumbent Vel Phillips in the primary.[2]

During his time in office, the Wisconsin legislature repeatedly reduced the office's duties and budget.[13]

In his campaigns for Secretary of State, among other campaigns, La Follette shunned fundraising in the style of former Wisconsin Senator William Proxmire. In 1990, his opponent, Madison attorney and radio personality Stuart Levitan, campaigned on a promise to eliminate the secretary of state's office, whose duties had been reduced and transferred to other agencies (including the State Board of Elections) by the state legislature, under La Follette's tenure.

Since being elected secretary of state, La Follette has run twice for federal office. In 1988, he ran for the U.S. Senate, losing the primary to Herb Kohl. In 1996, he made another bid for the U.S. House of Representatives, losing in the Democratic primary for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district to Lydia Spottswood, who went on to lose the general election to Mark Neumann.

In 2012, La Follette ran in the Democratic primary in the special election to recall Scott Walker.

In 2023, La Follette resigned as secretary of state. Governor Tony Evers appointed former State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski to the position.[14] At the time of his retirement, La Follette was the longest serving non-federal statewide elected official in the United States holding the same office, having served from January 3, 1983 to March 17, 2023.

Other roles

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Electoral history

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U.S. House (1970)

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Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District Election, 1970[15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Primary, September 8, 1970
Democratic Les Aspin 15,185 39.83%
Democratic Doug La Follette 15,165 39.78%
Democratic Gerald T. Flynn 6,130 16.08%
Democratic Perry J. Anderson 1,644 4.31%
Plurality 20 0.05%
Total votes 38,124 100.0%

Wisconsin Senate (1972)

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Wisconsin Senate, 22nd District Election, 1972[16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Primary, September 12, 1972
Democratic Doug La Follette 4,654 32.11%
Democratic John J. Maurer 3,332 22.99%
Democratic Edwin Anderson 2,582 17.81%
Democratic Ronald F. Lourigan 2,478 17.10%
Democratic Richard Lindgren 1,448 9.99%
Plurality 1,322 9.12%
Total votes 14,494 100.0%
General Election, November 7, 1972
Democratic Doug La Follette 25,522 53.98% −1.90%
Republican George W. Anderson 21,161 44.75% +0.63%
American Chester Hensley 601 1.27%
Plurality 4,361 9.22% -2.54%
Total votes 47,284 100.0% +15.44%
Democratic hold

Wisconsin Secretary of State (1974)

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Wisconsin Secretary of State Election, 1974[17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Primary, September 10, 1974
Democratic Doug La Follette 237,077 75.39%
Democratic Eugene Parks 77,409 24.61%
Total votes 314,486 100.0%
General Election, November 5, 1974
Democratic Doug La Follette 697,528 59.87% +22.45%
Republican Kent C. Jones 406,602 34.90% −26.81%
American Eugene R. Zimmerman 60,962 5.23% +4.36%
Plurality 290,926 24.97% +0.69%
Total votes 1,165,092 100.0% -10.58%
Democratic gain from Republican

Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor (1978)

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Wisconsin Gubernatorial Election, 1978[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Lieutenant Governor Primary, September 12, 1978
Democratic Doug La Follette 151,366 44.78%
Democratic Dale McKenna 47,257 13.98%
Democratic Harout O. Sanasarian 40,268 11.91%
Democratic Paul Offner 40,008 11.84%
Democratic Robert A. Anderson 21,230 6.28%
Democratic Charles F. Smith Jr. 19,504 5.77%
Democratic Monroe Swan 18,392 5.44%
Total votes 338,025 100.0%
General Election, November 7, 1978
Republican Lee S. Dreyfus
/ Russell Olson 		816,056 54.37% +12.30%
Democratic Martin J. Schreiber (incumbent)
/ Doug La Follette 		673,813 44.89% −8.30%
Constitution Eugene R. Zimmerman
/ George Reed 		6,355 0.42% +0.12%
Independent George C. Doherty
/ Marion A. Doherty 		2,183 0.15%
Independent Adrienne Kaplan
/ William Breihan 		1,548 0.10%
Independent Henry A. Ochsner
/ Robert E. Nordlander 		849 0.06%
Scattering 192 0.01%
Plurality 142,243 9.48% -1.65%
Total votes 1,500,996 100.0% +27.00%
Republican gain from Democratic

Wisconsin Secretary of State (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994)

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Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
1982[19] Primary Sep. 14 Doug La Follette Democratic 275,729 51.13% Ada Deer Dem. 166,371 30.85% 539,227 109,358
Vel Phillips (inc) Dem. 66,576 12.35%
Lewis T. Mittness Dem. 30,551 5.67%
General Nov. 2 Doug La Follette Democratic 984,835 65.57% Frederick H. Rice Rep. 496,024 33.03% 1,501,899 488,811
Leslie G. Key Lib. 13,481 0.90%
Leslie G. Key Con. 7,559 0.50%
1986[20] General Nov. 4 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 754,032 52.07% Clifford Krueger Rep. 670,672 46.31% 1,448,189 83,360
Richard L. Ackley L-F 23,485 1.62%
1990[21] Primary Sep. 11 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 129,926 72.38% Stuart Levitan Dem. 49,590 27.62% 179,516 80,336
General Nov. 6 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 733,390 55.67% Robert M. Thompson Rep. 583,955 44.33% 1,317,345 149,435
1994[22] General Nov. 8 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 845,742 57.03% Erling G. Jackson Rep. 590,666 39.83% 1,482,943 255,076
Kevin Scheunemann Lib. 26,397 1.78%
Ernest Brusubardis III Tax. 20,138 1.36%

U.S. House (1996)

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Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District Election, 1996[23]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Primary, September 10, 1996
Democratic Lydia Spottswood 16,945 45.68%
Democratic Doug La Follette 13,594 36.64%
Democratic Jeffrey C. Thomas 4,691 12.65%
Democratic Jerry Maiers 1,867 5.03%
Plurality 3,351 9.03%
Total votes 37,097 100.0%

Wisconsin Secretary of State (1998–2023)

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Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
1998 General[24] Nov. 3 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 973,744 57.98% Linda A. Cross Rep. 660,406 39.32% 1,679,484 313,338
Donald L. Carlson Lib. 18,074 1.08%
William C. Hemenway Tax. 17,354 1.03%
Leroy Mueller Ref. 9,906 0.59%
2002 General[25] Nov. 5 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 950,929 56.60% Robert Gerald Lorge Rep. 693,476 41.27% 1,680,164 257,453
Edward J. Frami Con. 34,750 2.07%
2006 Primary[26] Sep. 12 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 236,547 71.19% Scot Ross Dem. 95,354 28.70% 332,265 141,193
General[27] Nov. 7 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 1,184,720 58.07% Sandy Sullivan Rep. 796,686 39.05% 2,040,144 388,034
Michael LaForest Grn. 57,326 2.81%
2010 General[28] Nov. 2 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 1,074,118 51.61% David D. King Rep. 1,005,217 48.30% 2,081,198 68,901
2014 General[29] Nov. 4 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 1,161,113 50.00% Julian Bradley Rep. 1,074,835 46.29% 2,322,035 86,278
Andy Craig Ind. 58,996 2.54%
Jerry Broitzman Con. 25,744 1.11%
2018 Primary[30] Aug. 14 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 327,020 65.84% Arvina Martin Dem. 169,130 34.05% 496,720 157,890
General[31] Nov. 6 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 1,380,752 52.74% Jay Schroeder Rep. 1,235,034 47.18% 2,617,948 145,718
Brad Karas (write-in) Grn. 60 0.00%
2022 Primary[32] Aug. 9 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 300,773 63.57% Alexia Sabor Dem. 171,954 36.34% 473,144 128,819
General[33] Nov. 8 Doug La Follette (inc) Democratic 1,268,748 48.30% Amy Loudenbeck Rep. 1,261,306 48.01% 2,626,943 7,442
Neil Harmon Lib. 54,413 2.07%
Sharyl R. McFarland Grn. 41,532 1.58%

References

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  1. ^ "La Follette, Douglas J." Wisconsin Historical Society. 8 August 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Wisconsin Blue Book 2017-2018. Madison: Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau, 2017, p. 5.
  3. ^ "About Us". Clean Wisconsin. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  4. ^ Bill Glauber. "La Follette weathers Republican tsunami" Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 11, 2010.
  5. ^ Carmen Drahl. "[1]" "Douglas La Follette Chemist-turned-politician ran low-budget gubernatorial campaign", May 14th, 2012.
  6. ^ Peter Dreier. "[2]" Dissent Magazine, April 11th, 2011.
  7. ^ Dan Plutchak. "[3]" "Longtime Democratic Secretary of State Doug La Follette wins re-election", November 6th, 2018.
  8. ^ AP. "[4]" WEAU 13 News, Nov 6th, 2018.
  9. ^ "Bronson La Follette critical of relative". The Milwaukee Journal, February 10, 1970, p. 12.
  10. ^ Staff Archive. "[5]" Milwaukee Magazine, November 20th, 2006.
  11. ^ Unger, Nancy (2008). Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society Press.
  12. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (comp.). The State of Wisconsin 1973 Blue Book. Madison: 1973, p. 64.
  13. ^ "Doug La Follette sues Scott Walker over budget cuts to his office". Wisconsin State Journal. 15 July 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  14. ^ Bauer, Scott; Richmond, Todd (March 17, 2023). "Wisconsin Democratic Secretary of State La Follette resigns". Independent. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  15. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. "Elections in Wisconsin". The state of Wisconsin Blue Book, 1971 (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 296, 312. Retrieved 2019-04-06.
  16. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. "Elections in Wisconsin". The state of Wisconsin 1973 Blue Book (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 802, 822. Retrieved 2019-04-07.
  17. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. "Elections in Wisconsin". The state of Wisconsin 1975 Blue Book (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 797, 817. Retrieved 2019-04-07.
  18. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. "Elections in Wisconsin". The state of Wisconsin 1979-1980 Blue Book (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 894, 895, 914. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  19. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". The State of Wisconsin 1983-1984 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 878, 901. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  20. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". The state of Wisconsin 1987-1988 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 878, 897. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  21. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin 1991-1992 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 889, 907. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  22. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin 1995-1996 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 893, 913. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  23. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin 1997-1998 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 878, 881. Retrieved 2019-04-06.
  24. ^ "Elections in Wisconsin". State of Wisconsin 1999-2000 Blue Book (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 888, 889. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  25. ^ Results of Fall General Election (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. 2002-11-05. p. 2. Retrieved 2019-04-08 – via Wisconsin Historical Society.
  26. ^ Results of Fall Primary Election (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. 2006-09-12. p. 4. Retrieved 2019-04-08 – via Wisconsin Historical Society.
  27. ^ Results of Fall General Election (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. 2006-11-07. p. 2. Retrieved 2019-04-08 – via Wisconsin Historical Society.
  28. ^ 2010 Fall General Election Results Summary Post Recount (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. 2010-11-30. p. 2. Retrieved 2019-04-08 – via Wisconsin Historical Society.
  29. ^ Canvass Results for 2014 General Election (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. 2014-11-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2019-04-08 – via Wisconsin Elections Commission.
  30. ^ Canvass Results for 2018 Partisan Primary (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. 2018-08-14. p. 6. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  31. ^ Canvass Results for 2018 General Election (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. February 22, 2019. p. 2. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  32. ^ Canvass Results for 2022 Partisan Primary - 8/9/2022 (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. August 26, 2022. p. 3. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  33. ^ Canvass Results for 2022 General Election - 11/8/2022 (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 21, 2022. pp. 1–2. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Doug La Follette.
Party political offices
Preceded by
Robert Zimmermann
 Democratic nominee for Secretary of State of Wisconsin
1974 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
1978 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Vel Phillips
 Democratic nominee for Secretary of State of Wisconsin
1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 		Most recent
Wisconsin Senate
Preceded by Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 22nd district
1973–1975 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Secretary of State of Wisconsin
1975–1979 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Vel Phillips
 Secretary of State of Wisconsin
1983–2023 		Succeeded by
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