About Mike
Mike strives for progress on our challenges guided by progressive values:
Empathy for Others
Fairness in Processes
Equity in Outcomes
Service to Community
Devotion to Family
Public Servant
Mike was elected to the State Assembly, District 80, in 2022.
Mike is a former longtime aide to progressive champion U.S. Senator Russ Feingold.
Mike previously served on the Dane County Board, where he was a progressive voice for open and transparent government, fiscal responsibility, supporting County workers, and relief for families, businesses, and healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, solutions to housing insecurity, broadband access, and environmental conservation.
Mike is a former Alder in the City of Verona and later served on Verona’s Plan Commission. He also previously chaired the City of Verona’s Parks and Recreation Commission when the City designed and opened its new splash pad and renovated beach at Fireman’s Park.
In 2013, Mike helped found and has since helped lead Wisconsin’s chapter of New Leaders Council, which promotes the next leaders of Wisconsin’s progressive movement.
With Russ Feingold at a young leaders event
Small Business Owner
In 2017, Mike started a community-focused and family-friendly business: The Biergarten at Olbrich Park. The Biergarten is enjoyed by tens of thousands of families every year, and it has raised a significant amount of money for Madison City parks and community causes.
Prost!
Public Policy Advocate
Growing up with his sister, Sue, who has a profound learning disability, made Mike the advocate he is today. Mike learned early he had to stand up for Sue, and she inspires all of the advocacy work Mike does now. From 2010 to 2022, Mike was an advocate for Wisconsin’s low-income population at the Community Advocates Public Policy Institute. Mike’s areas of expertise included solving Wisconsin’s housing crisis, expanding health coverage and improving healthcare, paid leave and other economic security solutions, improving our criminal justice and corrections systems, and getting Wisconsinites out of poverty through work-based solutions. He has also taught graduate students at UW-Milwaukee’s Zilber School of Public Health on the social and economic determinants of health, and the acute and direct link between public policy and public health.
With Tammy Baldwin after discussing economic insecurity
Father
Mike and his wife met while interning together for U.S. Senator Russ Feingold, and now have two young sons and happily reside in the City of Verona. Mike enjoys tending his massive yet only moderately successful vegetable garden, loves to coach the boys’ baseball teams, and to cook. He cheers on the Packers, Brewers, Bucks, and Badgers.