Congratulations are in order to U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. Following your victories in the Aug. 11 primary, either one of you will be the next governor of the great State of Wisconsin. And in my humble opinion, either one of you will make a fine governor.
I have two simple requests of both of you regarding the upcoming campaign and your term(s) should you be victorious in November.
First: You have a choice in how you approach the campaign. Your advisors will undoubtedly bring negative ad ideas and push you to slander your opponent. I know both of you, and I believe you are both above a negative approach. You are both pragmatic, experienced leaders. You were both endorsed by high-ranking members of your respective parties. Let the voters choose you for who you are, not whom you are running against.
As you look beyond November, you will most likely need to deal with a split State Legislature. That means either one of you will need to work with the other party to get things done. Please don’t let the temptation of negative campaigning overcome the pragmatic need to avoid painting yourself into a hyper-partisan corner.
Candidates should be willing to do what is best for Wisconsin
This gets to my second request, which is to work with members of both parties and be willing to compromise and do what is best for the citizens of Wisconsin. A few years ago, a member of the Republican leadership in Madison told me why the legislature was holding back on a much-needed reform bill. “We don’t want to give Tony Evers a win” was his reason.
To me, holding the entire state hostage for political gain goes against everything a representative of the people should stand for. Neither of you will win in a landslide. Please remember you represent the people, not your party. Both of you have the chance to clear the slate, start anew, and work with your new partners in the legislature for the benefit of all of us.
I was very happy with the results of both gubernatorial primaries. I truly would be proud to call either one of you my next governor. I look forward to a spirited yet professional campaign, to election night, and to one of you being inaugurated.
Andy Nunemaker is CEO of Groupware Technologies and is a proud citizen of Milwaukee.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Let’s have a spirited yet professional campaign for governor | Opinion
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Reporting by Andy Nunemaker, Special to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Andy Nunemaker, Special to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
