Voelkel brings big ideas to run for lieutenant governor

Ben Voelkel is no stranger to politics.

The Waukesha County native who currently lives in Brookfield spent the past five years working in Senator Ron Johnson’s office as communication director.

Two years ago, Voelkel celebrated his 33rd birthday being diagnosed with total kidney failure and having to be on dialysis for nine months before he was able to get a transplant.

That ordeal, and the second chance he has been given at life, put a lot of things in perspective for Voelkel. He says he was grateful to have grown up in Wisconsin and attended a great state university here. He said he wanted to do his part to make sure Wisconsin continues to be a great place.

Voelkel made the decision to run for Wisconsin lieutenant governor. On February 10 he was in Medford and stopped by The Star News to talk about his candidacy, his goals for the state and what he hopes to accomplish if elected.

The office of lieutenant governor in Wisconsin runs independently of the candidate for governor through the primary and is paired with the gubernatorial candidate in the fall general election. Voelkel is part of a crowded Republican field of candidates which includes at least five other active candidates.

Voelkel said he is concerned that Wisconsin has gotten off track when it comes to guaranteeing good jobs, good schools and safe community.

He described these as basic building blocks of success needed to help families climb the ladder of opportunity from one generation to the next.

“Statewide people need to be leading full and engaged lives,” he said, noting it is hard to do that when he sees students falling further and further behind in schools, economic issues, inflation going through the roof and significant spikes in violent crimes.

He cited the state’s drug issues with climbing abuse and overdose rates. He said families are being torn apart by drug abuse and noted employers are not being able to find people to work because they can’t pass drug tests.

“Every time I see those issues spring up, it is stopping someone from pursuing their dreams,” he said. He gives the example of his grandfather driving a city bus to work hard and provide the opportunity for future generations to be a little better off. According to Voelkel, the office of the lieutenant governor can be an important bridge between the governor and other branches of government and the people. “It needs to be someone who can communicate and be a good listener,” he said. He said often Madison is in a bubble, where politicians talk to themselves rather than listening and hearing what the people in the rest of the state have to say. He said he would work to pierce that bubble and inject some Wisconsin common sense.

He said he believes the lieutenant governor needs to be someone who can be a leader and get people fired up, advocating for big agenda items and bold reform measures, “If you are going to do something, do it right and do it big,” Voelkel said.

One such big idea for Voelkel, is pushing for educational funding reform with so-called “backpack bills” where state education funding follows the students. He said such a measure would help parents find excellence for their kids.

“Some students learn better in different environments than others,” he said, noting that parents should be empowered to buck the system a little bit.

Another area Voelkel feels strongly about is keeping lines of communication open. Since announcing his candidacy this fall, he has visited 37 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties and plans to hit them all. “I am putting the miles on and showing up,” he said, noting that being there shows that a candidate cares and helps build relationships.

He said he has been spending time talking with sheriffs, mayors and county officials. “You need to have great relationships through the state on many levels,” he said.

One area that is a special focus for Voelkel is the need to combat violent crime. He cited the tragic attack at the Waukesha Christmas Parade. He called for reform of the way bond works noting that the person who committed that crime had been in jail for a similar offense and “for $1,000 had gotten out and had got his car keys back.” “That is pretty broken,” he said.

“I feel we need to increase bail for violent offenders,” he said. “For repeat violent felons we should increase sentencing.”

He noted that the Waukesha incident got attention because it was a parade and was caught on video. He said that other violent crime doesn’t make the news with robberies and homicides.

“Those sorts of things rip families apart too,” he said. Other areas Voelkel feels need to be looked at include Tax reform including the elimination of the state income tax.

“We could put dollars back in people’s pockets,” he said. He suggested that by slightly increasing the sales tax on things like televisions and cars, the state could eliminate the state income tax and encourage economic growth. He noted this would be especially beneficial to small businesses.

“Wisconsin needs more people to move to the state and help the state grow,” he said, citing the fast growth in Texas and Tennessee and noting that is due in part to not having state income taxes.

Another one of the “big and bold” reform measures supported by Voelkel is for Wisconsin to join other states in putting the power of overseeing the election in the hands of an elected official. He suggested this could be a nonpartisan statewide office similar to the state superintendent or to give those duties to an existing constitutional officer in the state.

Regardless, he said it would take the running of elections out of the bureaucracy of the Wisconsin Election Commission. “It would go a long way to show serious reform,” he said, calling on the need to restore trust in the electoral process.

The partisan primary is scheduled for August 9 with the general election on November 8.