Frederick Kessler
Frederick Kessler (Democratic Party) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing District 12. Kessler assumed office in 2005. Kessler left office on January 7, 2019.
Kessler (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Wisconsin State Assembly to represent District 12. Kessler lost in the Democratic primary on August 14, 2018.
Kessler was elected to the chamber in 2004. He previously served in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1961 to 1972. Kessler died on November 12, 2024 following a cancer diagnosis.[1]
Biography
Kessler attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Kessler has worked as a labor arbitrator. He has served as circuit judge in Wisconsin (1978-1981, 1986-1988), and County Court Judge of Milwaukee County (1972-1979).[2]
Committee assignments
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Wisconsin committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Agriculture |
| • Campaigns and Elections |
| • Constitution and Ethics |
| • Criminal Justice and Public Safety |
| • Insurance |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Kessler served on the following committees:
| Wisconsin committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Criminal Justice and Public Safety |
| • Constitution and Ethics |
| • Campaigns and Elections |
| • Agriculture |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Kessler served on the following committees:
| Wisconsin committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Campaigns and Elections |
| • Criminal Justice |
| • Public Safety and Homeland Security |
2011-2012
During the 2011-2012 legislative session, Kessler served on these committees:
| Wisconsin committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Administrative Rules |
| • Administrative Rules |
| • Criminal Justice |
| • Elections and Campaign Reform |
| • Personal Privacy |
2009-2010
During the 2009-2010 legislative session, Kessler served on these committees:
| Wisconsin committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • State Affairs and Homeland Security, Chair |
| • Criminal Justice |
| • Corrections and the Courts |
| • Elections and Campaign Reform |
| • Judiciary and Ethics |
| • Personal Privacy |
Issues
Earmark Transparency Act
Kessler opposes the Earmark Transparency Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Rich Zipperer. The North Shore Exponent claims Kessler fears that such legislation would reveal which earmarks are put into the budgets that benefit his district.[3]
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2018
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2018
General election
General election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 12
LaKeshia Myers won election in the general election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 12 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | LaKeshia Myers (D) | 98.5 | 17,428 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 1.5 | 274 | ||
| Total votes: 17,702 | |||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 12
LaKeshia Myers defeated incumbent Frederick Kessler in the Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 12 on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | LaKeshia Myers | 59.3 | 3,709 | |
 | Frederick Kessler | 40.7 | 2,545 | |
| Total votes: 6,254 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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2016
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2016
Elections for the Wisconsin State Assembly took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 9, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.
Incumbent Frederick Kessler ran unopposed in the Wisconsin State Assembly District 12 general election.[4][5]
| Wisconsin State Assembly, District 12 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Frederick Kessler Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 18,642 | |
| Total Votes | 18,642 | |||
| Source: Wisconsin Elections Commission | ||||
Incumbent Frederick Kessler ran unopposed in the Wisconsin State Assembly District 12 Democratic primary.[6][7]
| Wisconsin State Assembly, District 12 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Frederick Kessler Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2014
Elections for all 99 seats in the Wisconsin State Assembly took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 12, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 2, 2014. Incumbent Frederick P. Kessler was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Ollie Dombrow (D) and Russell Goodwin (R) were removed from the ballot before the election.[8][9][10][11] Kessler defeated write-in candidate Russell Goodwin (R) in the general election, and was re-elected to another term.[12]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Frederick P. Kessler Incumbent |
100% | 16,494 | |
| Republican | Russell Goodwin (write-in) | 0% | 3 | |
| Total Votes | 16,497 | |||
2012
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2012
Kessler won re-election in the 2012 election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 12. Kessler defeated Mario Hall in the Democratic primary on August 14 and was unopposed in the general election on November 6, 2012.[13][14]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Frederick Kessler Incumbent |
98.6% | 16,193 | |
| – | Scattering | 1.4% | 232 | |
| Total Votes | 16,425 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Frederick Kessler Incumbent |
71.8% | 1,937 |
| Mario Hall | 28.2% | 762 |
| Total Votes | 2,699 | |
2010
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2010
Kessler was re-elected to Wisconsin State Assembly District 12. He was unopposed in the general election on November 2, 2010. Kessler was unopposed in the September 14, 2010, primary election.[15]
| Wisconsin State Assembly, District 12 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Frederick Kessler (D)
|
13,758 | |||
| Sam Hagedorn (R) | 4,868 | |||
| Wisconsin State Assembly, District 12
Democratic primary (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Frederick P. Kessler (D)
|
2,689 | 99.41% | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Kessler won re-election to Assembly District 12, receiving 98.92 percent of the vote.[16]
| Wisconsin Assembly District 12 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Frederick Kessler (D)
|
20,399 | |||
| Scattering | 233 | |||
Campaign themes
2008
Kessler's answers to the Wisconsin State Legislative Election 2008 Political Courage Test are available. The test provides voters with insight as to how a candidate would vote on the issues if elected. Kessler did not provide an answer when asked what his top legislative priorities were.[17]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Kessler has been a board member of the World Affairs Council of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Chapter American Civil Liberties Union.[2]
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Wisconsin scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2018
In 2018, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 16 through March 27. Special sessions were held from January 1 through February 27 and from March 15 through March 29.
- Legislators are scored on whether they voted for or against MMAC's position.
- National Federation of Independent Business in Wisconsin: 2016 legislative voting record
- Legislators are scored on their votes on small business issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor policy.
- Wisconsin Family Action: 2017-2018 legislative scorecard
- Legislators are scored by the Wisconsin Family Action on their votes on legislation related to "marriage, family, the sanctity of human life, or religious freedom."[18]
- Legislators are scored on their stances on conservation issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on legislation WMC deemed as "most important issues for the business community."
- Wisconsin Professional Police Association: 2018 report card
- Legislators are scored on their votes by the Wisconsin Professional Police Association on legislation related to Wisconsin's law enforcement community.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues.
2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 3 through December 31. There were also special sessions. The first special session was January 5. The second special session was August 1 through September 15.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 12 through March 15.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 5 through December 31.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 14 through June 4.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 7 to December 31.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 10 through March 16.
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See also
- Wisconsin State Legislature
- Wisconsin State Assembly
- Wisconsin State Assembly Committees
- Wisconsin Joint Committees
- Wisconsin state legislative districts
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Wisconsin Assembly - Representative Frederick Kessler
- Profile from Open States
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Legislative Profile from Project Vote Smart
- Wisconsin Democracy Campaign
- Frederick Kessler on Facebook
- Frederick Kessler on Wisconsin Vote
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004
Footnotes
- ↑ Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Obituary: Fred Kessler was a former state legislator and judge," November 13, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed May 5, 2014
- ↑ North Shore Exponent, "Will Red Fred Kessler listen to Rich Zipperer’s call for comprehensive earmark reform in Wisconsin?" August 4, 2009
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Candidates on Ballot by Election - 2016 General Election - 11/8/2016," accessed November 4, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Elections Commission, "2016 Fall General Election Results," accessed December 2, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Candidate Tracking by Office," accessed June 20, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Elections and Ethics Commission, "2016 Partisan Primary," accessed September 16, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability, "Candidates Registered by Office," June 11, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "2014 Partisan Primary Candidates," accessed June 19, 2014
- ↑ otegoodwin.com, "Home," accessed June 25, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Vote, accessed October 11, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Canvass Results for 2014 General Election," December 1, 2014
- ↑ Government Accountability Board, "2012 Fall Partisan Primary," accessed May 5, 2014
- ↑ Government Accountability Board, "2012 Fall General Election," accessed May 5, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Official 2010 Primary election results," accessed April 25, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin State Elections Board, "Results of Fall General Election-11/04/2008," accessed May 6, 2014
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Issue Positions," accessed May 6, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Family Action, "2015-2016 legislative scorecard," accessed May 31, 2017
- ↑ Wisconsin Family Action, "2015-2016 legislative scorecard," accessed May 31, 2017
- ↑ Wisconsin Family Action, "2015-2016 legislative scorecard," accessed May 31, 2017
- ↑ Wisconsin Family Action, "2015-2016 legislative scorecard," accessed May 31, 2017
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Wisconsin State Assembly District 12 2004–2018 |
Succeeded by LaKeshia Myers (D) |
