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Robert Brooks (Wisconsin)
2025 - Present
2027
0
Robert Brooks (Republican Party) is a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing District 59. He assumed office on January 6, 2025. His current term ends on January 4, 2027.
Brooks (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Wisconsin State Assembly to represent District 59. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Biography
Representative Brooks was born in Rockford, IL and attended the University of Wisconsin La Crosse from 1983 to 1986. He was elected to the Ozaukee County Board in 2002 and served as chairman of the board for nine years. While on the Ozaukee County Board, he served as Commissioner of the South Eastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission and on the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Mutual Insurance Company.[1] Brooks' career experience includes owning and operating a number of businesses including restaurants, real estate, and rental properties. He served as the chairman of the Saukville Gun Club and the Saukville Chamber of Commerce named him Citizen of the Year.[2]
In 2014 Representative Brooks was first elected to represent District 60 in the Wisconsin State Assembly, encompassing parts of Ozaukee and Washington counties. He was re-elected in 2018. In the 2019 session, Rep. Brooks served on the Ways and Means Committee, the Judiciary Committee, the Housing and Real Estate Committee, as Vice-Chair of the Committee on Medicaid Reform and Oversight, and as Co-Chair of the Joint Legislative Council.[3]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Brooks was assigned to the following committees:
- Aging and Long-Term Care Committee
- Corrections Committee
- Health Committee
- Housing and Real Estate Committee, Chairman
- Sporting Heritage Committee
- State Affairs Committee
- Ways and Means Committee, Vice Chairman
2021-2022
Brooks was assigned to the following committees:
- Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems
- Housing and Real Estate Committee
- Insurance Committee
- Local Government Committee
- State Affairs Committee
- Transportation Committee
- Ways and Means Committee
2019-2020
Brooks was assigned to the following committees:
- Joint Legislative Council Committee, Co-Chair
- Housing and Real Estate Committee
- Judiciary Committee
- Local Government Committee
- Ways and Means Committee
- Medicaid Reform and Oversight Committee, Vice-Chair
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
Wisconsin committee assignments, 2017 |
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• Assembly Organization |
• Housing and Real Estate |
• Mining and Rural Development |
• Rules |
• Joint Legislative Council, Co-chair |
• Legislative Organization |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Brooks served on the following committees:
Wisconsin committee assignments, 2015 |
---|
• Housing and Real Estate |
• Education |
• Colleges and Universities, Vice-Chair |
• Children and Families |
• Aging and Long-Term Care |
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
2024
See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2024
General election
General election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59
Incumbent Robert Brooks defeated Jack Holzman in the general election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks (R) | 75.7 | 29,315 |
Jack Holzman (D) | 24.2 | 9,369 | ||
Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 35 |
Total votes: 38,719 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59
Jack Holzman advanced from the Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 on August 13, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | Jack Holzman | 99.8 | 3,018 | |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 6 |
Total votes: 3,024 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59
Incumbent Robert Brooks advanced from the Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 on August 13, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks | 99.7 | 9,323 |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 30 |
Total votes: 9,353 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Brooks in this election.
2022
See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2022
General election
General election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks defeated Daniel Larsen in the general election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks (R) | 64.7 | 21,396 |
![]() | Daniel Larsen (D) ![]() | 35.2 | 11,636 | |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 29 |
Total votes: 33,061 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Daniel Larsen advanced from the Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on August 9, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Daniel Larsen ![]() | 99.7 | 3,417 |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 11 |
Total votes: 3,428 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks defeated Samuel Krieg in the Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on August 9, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks | 80.5 | 9,064 |
![]() | Samuel Krieg ![]() | 19.4 | 2,179 | |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 10 |
Total votes: 11,253 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Campaign finance
2020
See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2020
General election
General election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks won election in the general election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks (R) | 96.8 | 28,853 |
Other/Write-in votes | 3.2 | 964 |
Total votes: 29,817 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks defeated Chris Reimer in the Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on August 11, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks | 76.0 | 6,958 |
Chris Reimer ![]() | 24.0 | 2,198 |
Total votes: 9,156 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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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Campaign finance
2018
- See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2018
General election
General election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks defeated Chris Rahlf in the general election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks (R) | 64.9 | 20,702 |
![]() | Chris Rahlf (D) ![]() | 35.0 | 11,182 | |
Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 36 |
Total votes: 31,920 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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 Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Chris Rahlf advanced from the Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Chris Rahlf ![]() | 100.0 | 3,519 |
Total votes: 3,519 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60
Incumbent Robert Brooks advanced from the Republican primary for Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Robert Brooks | 100.0 | 7,355 |
Total votes: 7,355 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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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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 Robert Brooks defeated David Pelikan in the Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 general election.[4][5]
Wisconsin State Assembly, District 60 General Election, 2016 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Republican | ![]() |
75.10% | 23,806 | |
Independent | David Pelikan | 24.90% | 7,895 | |
Total Votes | 31,701 | |||
Source: Wisconsin Elections Commission |
Incumbent Robert Brooks ran unopposed in the Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 Republican primary.[6][7]
Wisconsin State Assembly, District 60 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
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Party | Candidate | |
Republican | ![]() |
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. Robert Brooks defeated Jean Opitz in the Republican primary. Perry Duman (D) and Joe Angelo Erato (R) were removed from the ballot before the primary elections.[8][9][10] However, Duman earned the Democratic nomination as a write-in candidate. Brooks faced Duman in the general.[11] Brooks defeated Duman in the general election, and was elected to the seat.[12]
Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | ![]() |
100% | 24,066 | |
Democratic | Perry Duman (write-in) | 0% | 5 | |
Total Votes | 24,071 |
Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
---|---|---|
![]() |
58.1% | 4,791 |
Jean F. Opitz | 41.9% | 3,457 |
Total Votes | 8,248 |
Endorsements
In 2014, Brooks' endorsements included the following:[13]
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Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Robert Brooks did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Robert Brooks did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Robert Brooks did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2014
Brooks' campaign website highlighted the following issues:[14]
Voter ID
- Excerpt: "I support legislation requiring a photo identification to vote. Protecting the right to vote should be a priority of every elected official. Moreover, proof of citizenship and residency when registering to vote should be a minimal standard for purposes of preventing fraud. Voting is a privilege and honor. It should be easy to vote, but hard to cheat."
Government Reform
- Excerpt: "I believe we need to streamline state government by eliminating agency rules and state laws which prevent, or even in some cases prohibit, elected officials from running government in the most cost effective manner possible. Act 10 has provided local officials with the necessary tools to better manage public sector employees while at the same time providing the organizational flexibility to make the decisions necessary to provide better services."
Taxes
- Excerpt: "In order to lower the overall tax burden on Wisconsin residents, all levels of government must prioritize spending, distinguishing between core services that must be provided and benefits that government simply cannot afford (and in all likelihood should have never been providing in the first place). Too often policy makers have lost sight of what should be core state functions – public safety and infrastructure. The state must continue increasing accountability, identifying efficiencies, and identifying those functions which can be better served by the private sector."
Education
- Excerpt: "Parents should be empowered with the ability to provide their children with the best education available irrespective of zip code. By expanding school choice, charter schools and other education options, parents have the necessary tools to provide the education that best fits their child."
Jobs
- Excerpt: "Four areas that need to be improved to create a vibrant economy in Wisconsin are: Lower taxes, Less government regulation, Certainty in health care and A skilled workforce."
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.
Noteworthy events
Apology for racial, sexual comments (2018)
Brooks was accused of making racial and sexual comments to female legislators at an event in July. Brooks allegedly said he would not buy a drink for Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (R) because she was Hispanic. He was also accused of making sexual comments to Reps. Cindi Duchow (R) and Amy Loudenbeck (R). In a statement from House Speaker Robin Vos' office, the three female lawmakers said Brooks' comments were inappropriate and offensive. In a statement to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the lawmakers said Brooks had apologized and they were "pleased with the appropriate way in which this case was handled and have already put it behind us."[15]
Brooks said in a statement, "I regret that I made some stupid comments while under the influence of alcohol after our caucus in the Dells. I take full responsibility for my behavior and have apologized for my actions. I am ready to move on from this incident and fully support and will adhere to the Assembly policies to maintain a safe workplace for legislators and staff."[15]
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.
2024
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 16 to March 12.
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2023
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 3 to December 31.
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2022
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 18 to March 8.
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2021
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 4 to December 31.
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2020
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 14 to May 13.
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2019
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Wisconsin State Legislature was in session from January 7, 2019 through January 13, 2020.
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2018
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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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.
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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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See also
2024 Elections
External links
Candidate Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 |
Officeholder Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Vote Smart, "Rob Brooks' Biography," accessed October 10, 2019
- ↑ Wisconsin State Assembly, "State Representative Robert Brooks," accessed October 10, 2019
- ↑ Wisconsin State Assembly, "State Representative Robert Brooks," accessed October 10, 2019
- ↑ 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
- ↑ Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel, "Wisconsin 2014 fall primary election results," accessed August 12, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability, "Candidates Registered by Office," June 11, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "2014 Partisan Primary Candidates," accessed June 19, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Votes, accessed October 11, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Canvass Results for 2014 General Election," December 1, 2014
- ↑ Rob Brooks for Assembly, "Endorsements," accessed October 27, 2014
- ↑ Rob Brooks for Assembly, "Issues," accessed October 27, 2014
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "Wisconsin Assembly Republican leader apologizes for making racial, sexual comments to female lawmakers," September 26, 2018
- ↑ 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 | ||
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Preceded by Ty Bodden (R) |
Wisconsin State Assembly District 59 2025-Present |
Succeeded by - |
Preceded by - |
Wisconsin State Assembly District 60 2015-2025 |
Succeeded by Jerry O’Connor (R) |