Wisconsin's 85th Assembly district

Wisconsin's 85th State Assembly district
From 2024 to 2031 From 2022 to 2023 From 2012 to 2021 2024 map defined in 2023 Wisc. Act 94 2022 map defined in Johnson v. Wisconsin Elections Commission 2011 map was defined in 2011 Wisc. Act 43
Assemblymember	Patrick Snyder R–Schofield since January 3, 2017 (8 years)
Demographics	83.57% White 1.88% Black 2.71% Hispanic 9.3% Asian 1.97% Native American 0.12% Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
Population (2020)  • Voting age	59,110 45,970
Website	Official website
Notes	Wausau, Wisconsin

The 85th Assembly district of Wisconsin is one of 99 districts in the Wisconsin State Assembly.[1] Located in north-central Wisconsin, the district is entirely contained within Marathon County. It includes the city of Wausau and the village of Weston.[2] The district is represented by Republican Patrick Snyder, since January 2017.[3] After the 2024 redistricting, Snyder no longer resides in the new 85th district.

The 85th Assembly district is located within Wisconsin's 29th Senate district, along with the 86th and 87th Assembly districts.[4]

• 
  Downtown Wausau
• 
  Northcentral Technical College in Wausau

History

The district was created in the 1972 redistricting act (1971 Wisc. Act 304) which first established the numbered district system, replacing the previous system which allocated districts to specific counties.[5] The 85th district was drawn almost exactly in line with the previous Marathon County 2nd district (the cities of Wausau and Schofield, and north-central Marathon County. The last representative of the Marathon County 2nd district, Tony Earl, went on to win the 1972 election as the first representative of the 85th Assembly district.[6] The district has remained in the same vicinity, centered on Wausau and Schofield, in the various redistricting schemes since 1972, with the exception of the 1982 court-ordered plan which temporarily moved the district to eastern Waupaca County. The 2011 redistricting act was the most significant change to the boundaries of the district since 1982, maintaining Wausau and Schofield in the district, but shifting away from the north-central towns of Marathon County to encompass more of the rural eastern half of the county.

The 2024 redistricting (2023 Wisc. Act 94) swapped out Schofield and a number of towns in favor of the neighboring village of Weston. Under the new map, the 85th district is projected to be one of the most competitive districts in the state legislature.

Notable former representatives of the 85th district include Tony Earl, who was later elected the 41st Governor of Wisconsin, and Gregory Huber, who was later appointed as a Wisconsin circuit court judge by Governor Jim Doyle and is now the current chief judge for the 9th judicial administrative district of Wisconsin.

List of past representatives

List of representatives to the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 85th district

Member	Party	Residence	Counties represented	Term start	Term end	Ref.
District sreated
Tony Earl	Dem.	Wausau	Marathon	January 1, 1973	January 6, 1975	[6]
Edward F. McClain	Dem.	Wausau		January 6, 1975	January 5, 1981
John H. Robinson	Dem.	Wausau		January 5, 1981	January 3, 1983
Francis R. Byers	Rep.	Clintonville	Outagamie, Waupaca, Winnebago	January 3, 1983	January 7, 1985
John H. Robinson	Dem.	Wausau	Marathon	January 7, 1985	May 23, 1988
--Vacant--				May 23, 1988	January 2, 1989
Gregory Huber	Dem.	Wausau		January 2, 1989	May 31, 2004
--Vacant--			Marathon, Shawano	May 31, 2004	January 3, 2005
Donna J. Seidel	Dem.	Wausau		January 3, 2005	January 7, 2013
Mandy Wright	Dem.	Wausau	Marathon	January 7, 2013	January 5, 2015	[7]
David Heaton	Rep.	Wausau		January 5, 2015	January 3, 2017	[8]
Patrick Snyder	Rep.	Schofield		January 3, 2017	Current	[3]

Electoral history

Year	Date	Elected				Defeated				Total	Plurality	Other primary candidates
1972[9]	Nov. 7	Tony Earl	Democratic	14,432	100.0%					14,432	14,432
1974[10]	Nov. 5	Edward F. McClain	Democratic	7,038	50.01%	Frank A. Savino	Rep.	7,034	49.99%	14,072	4	Alois W. Kowalchyk (Dem.) Ervin C. Marquardt (Dem.)
1976[11]	Nov. 2	Edward F. McClain (inc.)	Democratic	12,553	62.83%	Vincent K. Howard	Rep.	7,427	37.17%	19,980	5,126
1978[12]	Nov. 7	Edward F. McClain (inc.)	Democratic	9,241	54.91%	Vincent K. Howard	Rep.	7,588	45.09%	16,829	1,653
1980[13]	Nov. 4	John H. Robinson	Democratic	11,026	51.49%	Kay B. Smith	Rep.	10,387	48.51%	21,413	639	Raymond J. Omernick (Rep.) Rosalie LaRocque (Dem.) David G. Lincoln (Dem.)
1982[14]	Nov. 2	Francis R. Byers	Republican	9,213	70.76%	Benjamin Amador	Dem.	3,807	29.24%	13,020	5,406	Ervin W. Conradt (Rep.)
1984[15]	Nov. 6	John H. Robinson	Democratic	13,452	60.79%	Patrick D. Braatz	Rep.	8,678	39.21%	22,130	4,774
1986[16]	Nov. 4	John H. Robinson (inc.)	Democratic	10,868	63.39%	Robert J. Gwidt	Rep.	6,278	36.61%	17,146	4,590
1988[17]	Nov. 8	Gregory Huber	Democratic	10,595	50.48%	David M. Torkko	Rep.	10,392	49.52%	20,987	203	Larry Saeger (Dem.) Francis Xavier Vogel (Dem.) Patrick D. Braatz (Rep.)
1990[18]	Nov. 6	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	9,785	57.30%	Rebecca Dodson	Rep.	7,291	42.70%	17,076	2,494
1992[19]	Nov. 3	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	16,211	100.0%					16,211	16,211
1994[20]	Nov. 8	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	10,446	65.23%	Eric D. Zeichert	Rep.	5,568	34.77%	16,014	4,878
1996[21]	Nov. 5	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	14,628	70.44%	Eric D. Zeichert	Rep.	6,139	29.56%	20,767	8,489
1998[22]	Nov. 3	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	9,873	59.22%	Al Lippert	Rep.	6,800	40.78%	16,673	3,073
2000[23]	Nov. 7	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	13,692	62.26%	Al Lippert	Rep.	8,297	37.73%	21,992	5,395
2002[24]	Nov. 5	Gregory Huber (inc.)	Democratic	14,079	99.78%					14,110	14,048
2004[25]	Nov. 2	Donna J. Seidel	Democratic	15,666	57.29%	Sarah L. Kamke	Rep.	11,667	42.67%	27,345	3,999	Bill Marcis (Rep.) Linda Minnihan (Rep.) Ed Gale (Rep.)
2006[26]	Nov. 7	Donna J. Seidel (inc.)	Democratic	12,802	64.55%	Bryan Rasmussen	Rep.	7,025	35.42%	19,832	5,777
2008[27]	Nov. 4	Donna J. Seidel (inc.)	Democratic	16,975	64.08%	Jess F. Kufahl	Rep.	9,487	35.81%	26,489	7,488
2010[28]	Nov. 2	Donna J. Seidel (inc.)	Democratic	10,298	52.53%	Charles R. Eno	Rep.	8,460	43.15%	19,604	1,838
						Jim Maas	Lib.	830	4.23%
2012[29]	Nov. 6	Mandy Wright	Democratic	13,930	49.70%	Patrick Snyder	Rep.	13,025	46.47%	28,026	905	Jeff Johnson (Dem.)
						Jim Maas	Ind.	1,047	3.74%
2014[30]	Nov. 4	Dave Heaton	Republican	11,167	50.19%	Mandy Wright (inc.)	Dem.	11,082	49.81%	22,249	85
2016[31]	Nov. 8	Patrick Snyder	Republican	14,722	53.35%	Mandy Wright	Dem.	12,837	46.52%	27,594	1,885
2018[32]	Nov. 6	Patrick Snyder (inc.)	Republican	13,791	55.25%	Alyson Leahy	Dem.	11,150	44.67%	24,962	2,641
2020[33]	Nov. 3	Patrick Snyder (inc.)	Republican	16,599	55.09%	Jeff Johnson	Dem.	13,515	44.85%	30,132	3,084	Aaron A. LaFave (Dem.)
2022[34]	Nov. 8	Patrick Snyder (inc.)	Republican	13,689	56.2%	Kristin Conway	Dem.	10,659	43.76%	24,358	3,030

References

1. "Assembly District 85". Wisconsin Legislature. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
2. "Wisconsin Legislative Districts - Assembly District 85 Boundaries". Wisconsin Legislature. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
3. "Representative Patrick Snyder". Wisconsin Legislature. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
4. An Act ... relating to: legislative redistricting (Act 94). Wisconsin Legislature. 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
5. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1973). "Legislature" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1973 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 227–230. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
6. Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V., eds. (1972). "Biographies" (PDF). The state of Wisconsin 1973 Blue Book (Report). State of Wisconsin. p. 78. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
7. "Representative Mandy Wright". Wisconsin Legislature. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
8. "Representative David Heaton". Wisconsin Legislature. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
9. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1973). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1973 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 810, 828. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
10. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1975). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1975 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 810, 831. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
11. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1977). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1977 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 894, 916. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
12. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1979). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1979-1980 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 908, 926. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
13. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1981). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1981-1982 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 896, 917. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
14. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1983). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1983-1984 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 891, 912. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
15. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1985). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1985-1986 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 909, 927. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
16. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1987). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Barish, Lawrence S. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1987-1988 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 890, 908. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
17. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1989). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S.; Theobald, H. Rupert (eds.). State of Wisconsin 1989-1990 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 912, 927. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
18. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1991). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S.; Theobald, H. Rupert (eds.). State of Wisconsin 1991-1992 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 901, 917. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
19. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1993). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S.; Theobald, H. Rupert (eds.). State of Wisconsin 1993-1994 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 906, 923. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
20. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1995). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S. (ed.). State of Wisconsin 1995-1996 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 905, 923. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
21. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1997). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S. (ed.). State of Wisconsin 1997-1998 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 901, 905. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
22. Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1999). "Elections" (PDF). In Barish, Lawrence S.; Meloy, Patricia E. (eds.). State of Wisconsin 1999-2000 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. pp. 881, 884. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
23. Results of Fall General Election - 11/07/2000 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. May 10, 2001. p. 38. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
24. Results of Fall General Election - 11/05/2002 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 2, 2002. p. 39. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
25. Results of Fall General Election - 11/02/2004 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 1, 2004. p. 40. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
26. Results of Fall General Election - 11/07/2006 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 5, 2006. p. 39. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
27. Results of Fall General Election - 11/04/2008 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 1, 2008. p. 37. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
28. 2010 Fall General Election Results Summary.pdf (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. December 1, 2010. p. 29. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
29. Canvass Results for 2012 Presidential and General Election - 11/6/2012 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. December 26, 2012. p. 29. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
30. Canvass Results for 2014 General Election - 11/4/2014 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Government Accountability Board. November 26, 2014. p. 28. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
31. Canvass Results for 2016 General Election - 11/8/2016 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. December 22, 2016. p. 28. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
32. Canvass Results for 2018 General Election - 11/6/2018 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. February 22, 2019. p. 29. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
33. Canvass Results for 2020 General Election - 11/3/2020 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 18, 2020. p. 28. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
34. Canvass Results for 2022 General Election - 11/8/2022 (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 30, 2022. p. 28. Retrieved December 1, 2022.