Robert Wirch
Encyclopedia
Robert W. Wirch is a Democratic Party
Democratic Party of Wisconsin
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in Wisconsin. As of 2009, it is headed by state party chairman Mike Tate, who is the youngest chairman of a state party...

 member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 22nd district since 1997. He previously served in the Wisconsin Assembly from 1993 through 1997.

Early life, education and career

Wirch was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha is a city and the county seat of Kenosha County in the State of Wisconsin in United States. With a population of 99,218 as of May 2011, Kenosha is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Kenosha is also the fourth-largest city on the western shore of Lake Michigan, following Chicago,...

 and graduated from Bradford High School
Mary D. Bradford High School
Bradford High School is a high school that serves students in grades 9 to 12 located in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It is the primary high school for students on the north side of the city.-History:...

. He received a bachelor degree from the University of Wisconsin–Parkside in 1970 and served in the United States Army Reserve
United States Army Reserve
The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....

 from 1965 to 1971. He served as a member of the Board of Supervisors for Kenosha County
Kenosha County, Wisconsin
-Demographics: As of the census of 2000, there were 149,577 people, 56,057 households, and 38,455 families residing in the county. The population density was 548 people per square mile . There were 59,989 housing units at an average density of 220 per square mile...

 from 1986 to 1994.

Wisconsin legislature

In 1992, Wirch was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....

 and served there until 1997.

Wirch was elected to the Wisconsin Senate in 1996 and was reelected in 2000, 2004 (when he defeated first-time candidate Reince Priebus
Reince Priebus
Reinhold Reince Priebus is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He is also a previous chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin....

), and 2008. He served as the Democratic Minority Caucus Chairperson from 2003 to 2005.

2011 Wisconsin protests

On February 20, 2011, it was reported that Wirch, along with the 13 other Democratic Wisconsin State Senators, had left the state to deny the State Senate a quorum on Governor Scott Walker
Scott Walker (politician)
Scott Kevin Walker is an American Republican politician who began serving as the 45th Governor of Wisconsin on January 3, 2011, after defeating Democratic candidate Tom Barrett, 52 percent to 47 percent in the November 2010 general election...

's controversial "Budget Repair" legislation.

2011 recall attempt

Wirch is currently subject to an active recall effort to remove him from his seat in the Wisconsin Senate. On February 24, 2011, Taxpayers to Recall Robert Wirch officially registered with the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board as a result of the 2011 Wisconsin protests
2011 Wisconsin protests
The 2011 Wisconsin protests were a series of demonstrations in the state of Wisconsin in the United States beginning in February involving at its zenith as many as 100,000 protestors opposing the Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill. Subsequently, anti-tax activists and other conservatives, including tea...

. 13,537 valid signatures of electors residing within the 22nd District had to be collected by April 25, 2011 to generate a recall election.

On April 21, Taxpayers to Recall Robert Wirch filed 18,300 signatures with Wisconsin's Government Accountability Board. There will be a recall primary on July 19, 2011 and the recall election on August 16, 2011.

On August 16, 2011 Robert Wirch won 57% of the vote, easily defeat Jonathan Steitz.

External links

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