Kevin Nicholson

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Kevin Nicholson

Republican Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

August 9, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

University of Minnesota, 2003

Graduate

Harvard University, 2012

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Marine Corps

Years of service

2004 - 2009

Personal

Birthplace

Milwaukee, Wis.

Religion

Lutheran

Profession

Management consultant

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Instagram

Campaign YouTube

Personal Twitter

Personal LinkedIn

Kevin Nicholson (Republican Party) ran for election for Governor of Wisconsin. He lost in the Republican primary on August 9, 2022. Nicholson unofficially withdrew from the race but appeared on the primary election ballot on August 9, 2022.

Nicholson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Kevin Nicholson was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is a Marine Corps veteran who served combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2004 and 2009. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota in 2003. After returning to the United States, he received master's degrees in public and business administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and Dartmouth Tuck School of Business. Nicholson has also worked as a management consultant for financial firms and other companies and as a combat engineer platoon commander.

Elections

2022

See also: Wisconsin gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Governor of Wisconsin

Incumbent Tony Evers defeated Tim Michels, Joan Ellis Beglinger (Unofficially withdrew), and Seth Haskin in the general election for Governor of Wisconsin on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tony Evers (D)	51.1	1,358,774
		Tim Michels (R)	47.8	1,268,535
		Joan Ellis Beglinger (Independent) (Unofficially withdrew)	1.0	27,198
		Seth Haskin (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	104
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	1,879

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,656,490
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Jess Hisel (Free Party)
• Chris Donahue (Independent / L)
• Levi Borntreger (Independent)
• Ryan Patrick Sweeney (Independent)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Governor of Wisconsin

Incumbent Tony Evers advanced from the Democratic primary for Governor of Wisconsin on August 9, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tony Evers	99.8	491,656
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	975

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 492,631
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Yousef Sameer Zahran (D)
• Job Edmond Hou-Seye (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Governor of Wisconsin

Tim Michels defeated Rebecca Kleefisch, Timothy Ramthun, Kevin Nicholson (Unofficially withdrew), and Adam Fischer in the Republican primary for Governor of Wisconsin on August 9, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tim Michels	47.1	326,969
		Rebecca Kleefisch	42.0	291,384
		Timothy Ramthun	6.0	41,639
		Kevin Nicholson (Unofficially withdrew)	3.6	24,884
		Adam Fischer	1.2	8,139
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	504

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 693,519
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Leonard Larson Jr. (R)
• John Macco (R)
• Robert Meyer (R)
• Jonathan Wichmann (R)
• James Kellen (R)

Endorsements

To view Nicholson's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.

2018

See also: United States Senate election in Wisconsin, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Wisconsin

Incumbent Tammy Baldwin defeated Leah Vukmir in the general election for U.S. Senate Wisconsin on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tammy Baldwin (D)	55.4	1,472,914
		Leah Vukmir (R)	44.6	1,184,885
		Other/Write-in votes	0.0	42

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,657,841
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Wisconsin

Incumbent Tammy Baldwin advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Wisconsin on August 14, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Tammy Baldwin

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Wisconsin

Leah Vukmir defeated Kevin Nicholson, George Lucia, Griffin Jones, and Charles Barman in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Wisconsin on August 14, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Leah Vukmir	48.9	217,230
		Kevin Nicholson	43.1	191,276
		George Lucia	4.2	18,786
		Griffin Jones	2.0	8,699
		Charles Barman	1.8	7,959

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 443,950
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• John Schiess (R)

Independent primary election

No Independent candidates ran in the primary.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Joseph Schnering (Independent)

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kevin Nicholson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Nicholson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I’m a husband and father, a native Wisconsinite, Marine Corps veteran, private sector businessman, and the founder and former volunteer president of No Better Friend Corp. Today, I’m running for Governor because I believe Wisconsin is worth fighting for.

I’m a combat veteran of the United States Marine Corps. I served as a combat engineer platoon commander as part of the troop surge to Iraq in 2007 in Al Anbar province. From 2008-2009, I was deployed to Afghanistan as part of Joint Task Force Paladin; I was awarded the Bronze Star for my service there.

Following my military service, I earned a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a Masters of Business Administration from Dartmouth Tuck School of Business. Following graduate school, I began working as a management consultant, serving a variety of clients across varied industries – first, at McKinsey & Co. and now at ghSMART. Today, I advise employers on the risks they take each and every day as they work to serve their clients and customers.

I received a BA from the University of Minnesota (where I met my wife, Jessie). Jessie and currently live in Delafield, Wisconsin with our three children.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Save our K-12 Education: Keep schools open and in-person with full transparency for all curriculums. Institute universal school choice to fund students instead of systems and protect them from the intellectual poison of Critical Race Theory. Pass Constitutional Amendment to transition the Department of Public Instruction Superintendent role to an Education Secretary.​
• Re-Establish Law and Order: Speak to high school and college students across Wisconsin about the importance and honor of serving in law enforcement. Work with counties and municipalities to rebuild and re-staff law enforcement agencies. Institute mandatory minimum bail & sentencing for violent charges and convictions. Remove district attorneys that refuse to keep us safe. Mandate use of E-Verify to deter and stop illegal immigration.​
• Establish Election Integrity: End ballot harvesting and use of ballot drop boxes to restore faith in our election processes and eliminate the unaccountable Wisconsin Election Commission. Mandate the counting of all legally requested and legally returned absentee ballots at one statewide location with transparency.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Saving K-12 education by instituting universal school choice, re-establishing law & order, restoring election integrity & stopping ballot harvesting, reforming higher education, building our economy, reducing government spending, protecting innocent life, eliminating mask & vaccine mandates.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Those who wish to lead our society should have first pushed themselves to their limits in other aspects of life; they should know how to make difficult decisions, they should have an understanding of finance and economics, and they should understand the consequences of potential mistakes. I have lived a life that has pushed me to adapt and overcome – from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, to a challenging and intellectual diverse education, to my work with demanding clients in the private sector. Given how our political class has failed our state and nation, it is clear that we do not have enough people in positions of leadership who can say the same. If we want to get our society back on track, we need people from outside the political class – with real and valuable experience – to step up and lead.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

First and foremost, I have a track record of accomplishment outside of government and politics. I served my country during two wars; I've worked in the private sector for some of the most challenging companies on the planet. And, while working full-time in the private sector, I founded and previously served as the volunteer President & CEO of No Better Friend Corp. – an organization named after the Marine Corps' unofficial slogan, "No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy" – with the mission of advocating for common sense policies, such as universal school choice, that will improve Wisconsin. As your Governor, I'll be honest and straightforward about the challenges our state faces, and I'll put the practical leadership lessons I've learned both on the battlefield as a Marine, and as a businessman in the private sector, to work for the people of our state. Of significant importance, I don’t make my living through politics. I don’t need to win office or to peddle influence in order to have a successful career. I’m running for governor because our society is off kilter, and we need people who understand the depths of our challenges to step up, lead and provide solutions.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Cow Cow Boogie, Ella Fitzgerald

A governor is the top executive authority in his or her state. What does that mean do you?

First and foremost, a governor needs to provide moral leadership and common sense. We value honesty here in Wisconsin, but too many of our leaders are afraid to tell it like it is, to stand up, and to make the tough decisions. I won’t stray from worthy battles, and I will never bend the knee to the woke mob – or to the political class. I lead from the front and I don’t back down – much to the chagrin of many insiders. I’ve served my country during challenging times as a Marine Corps combat leader, I’ve successfully tackled wide and varied challenges during my private sector career, and I’m ready to serve as Wisconsin’s governor as we fight to get our society back on track.

Different states require governors to have different degrees of responsibility for the state budgeting process. If it were your choice, what do you believe is the appropriate degree of gubernatorial involvement with this process in your state?

As governor, I will be closely involved in Wisconsin’s budgeting process in order to build our economy and to reduce government spending. I will implement a zero-based budgeting process on a go forward basis; every year, every biennium, every department within Wisconsin’s state government will start with $0 and justify every dollar it requests in the upcoming budget cycle. By digging into our state’s spending, we can identify waste and areas to reduce spending. With our spending reduced, we can comprehensively and wholistically reduce Wisconsin’s tax burden.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

First and foremost, to be an effective leader during turbulent and challenging times, one cannot simply go along with the status quo. As the governor of the state of Wisconsin, I will push back on legislative leaders when appropriate, and work together with those leaders when we are in agreement. This is the way the real world works; there is no problem with disagreement that occurs in defense of the truth and that yields better solutions. In essence, the people of Wisconsin will be able to rely on me to fight for what I view as the right course of action, regardless of who agrees or disagrees with me. Further, I look forward to working together with the legislature to make important structural improvements to the way our state operates – whether it’s in implementing universal school choice, securing election integrity, or emplacing mandatory minimum bail and sentencing guidelines – we must get our society back on track.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

As I travel around the state of Wisconsin, I hear every day that Wisconsinites are frustrated with the way our society is slipping away. We’ve seen a loss of law and order, our schools are a mess, and faith in our electoral process has been lost. Our purported leaders have run our state into the ground, and I feel a sense of urgency to get our state – and our society – back on track. Universal school choice will give control to Wisconsin’s families when it comes to their kids’ education. We must implement mandatory minimum bail and minimum sentencing for violent charges and convictions to keep violent criminals off our streets. Then we need to work with counties and municipalities across our state to re-staff and rebuild law enforcement agencies that cannot currently recruit or retain the staff that they need. We need to do away with the Wisconsin Elections Commission and transfer power to the elected Secretary of State. Then, as governor, I will work with the legislature to write laws that are crystal clear in eliminating ballot harvesting, ballot drop boxes, and the introduction of private funds into our public election processes. Once these actions are taken, we can dig in to reduce state spending, reduce our state’s tax burden, and grow our economy. Further, as governor, I will constantly push our federal representatives to create and enforce strategic trade policies that open up markets for Wisconsin’s agricultural and manufacturing producers, and further spur growth in our state.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2022 Elections

What's on the ballot? U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

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Candidate

Governor of Wisconsin

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Footnotes

[show]

Wisconsin's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Tammy Baldwin (D)

Ronald Johnson (R)

Representatives

District 1

Bryan Steil (R)

District 2

Mark Pocan (D)

District 3

Derrick Van Orden (R)

District 4

Gwen Moore (D)

District 5

Scott Fitzgerald (R)

District 6

Glenn Grothman (R)

District 7

Tom Tiffany (R)

District 8

Tony Wied (R)

Republican Party (7)

Democratic Party (3)