‘Mornings’ Newsletter Edition: Who is Sara Rodriguez?

☀️ Good morning!

We are almost a year away from the 2026 primary election—a bigger than normal August primary because it will determine the two main candidates who will face off to be Wisconsin’s next governor. While election cycles don’t have an official starting date, it is fair to say we are fully underway now that  Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez has completed her first week as a candidate, following Gov. Tony Evers’ announcement that he would not run again next year.

I’ll admit this: I thought there would be more Democrats and Republicans racing to get started ahead of an open primary. But as political strategist Joe Zepecki said on our radio show: Once the first candidate is official, there’s no real advantage to rushing an announcement. It can come when the candidate feels the time is right. And so with one Democrat and two Republicans already running, any other contenders will make their candidacies official throughout the coming weeks and months.

For Lt. Gov. Rodriguez, it’s the typical story of someone seen as an “overnight sensation,” which actually only comes after years of preparation. Those who say she’s too unknown will see how she takes her experience as a legislator, a lieutenant governor, a healthcare professional career, and a mom and translates that into being a candidate on a grand stage. And based on how she handled the first “whisper campaign” against her family (see below), it’s clear she’s got a good handle on the needs and expectations of Wisconsin voters.

Enjoy your day. And, as always, if news breaks while you’re out and about, you can stay up to date with our weekday newsletter, our social media posts, and our morning radio show.

⏮️ Last Week: What do you think of cryptocurrency? Noting the usual disclaimer that our poll is far from scientific, nearly all of our responses came from people who do not like crypto and do not want the US government putting any tax dollars at risk with it. We did get a smattering of responses from people who said they don’t know enough about it to say if it’s good or bad. And we did not get responses from anyone so enamored with cryptocurrency that they tried to sell us on it. We’ll take this as a sign of support for lawmakers who are taking action to put consumer protection ahead of the hype.

⏭️ This Week: It’s been a year-and-a-half since Wisconsin voters were freed from legislative maps that were rigged for over a decade to favor Republicans. However, the process of redistricting can be abused all over again after the next census, so pro-democracy groups and non-profit organizations have already begun seeking a change in state law that would remove the temptation for partisan legislators to engage in gerrymandering. Political journalist Dan Shafer’s Recombobulation Area newsletter has a report on what they hope to accomplish.

In the meantime, other states are wrestling with what you could call corrupt cartography. Texas legislators recently met to gerrymander their congressional district maps further because President Donald Trump told them to. It’s led to talk that solid “blue” states should respond by artificially adding more Democratic congressional districts to offset this Texas embrace of autocracy.

What do you think is the proper blue state response to “gerrymandering gone wild” in red states?

🄰  Do it. Taking the high road on this serious threat to democracy is like bringing a knife to a gunfight.

🄱  Don’t sink to their level. Two wrongs don’t make a right. The voters will eventually punish them.

To answer this week’s question or to suggest a different answer, hit reply or email me directly at pat@couriernewsroom.com, and we may share it in a future newsletter or on our radio show.

And to learn more about how politicians are abusing the system, listen to our Friday interview with Matt Hennie from our sister outlet, Courier Texas.

(Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez and guest co-host Dr. Kristin Lyerly join “Mornings with Pat Kreitlow Powered by UpNorthNews” on Aug. 1, 2025.)

Wisconsin’s lieutenant governor believes a cornerstone of life in our state involves setting up families to thrive, not just survive in tough economic times.

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez visited our radio show on Friday and outlined priorities that include affordable, accessible health care as well as accessible, affordable child care.

Rodriguez said voters appreciate that she isn’t a career politician—and criticized GOP lawmakers for doing little to address the crisis of affordable childcare

“They don’t want a politician, right? They want their neighbor, their friend.” Rodriguez said. “I’m a mom of two kids. I had to try to find childcare when my kids were smaller and it wasn’t as hard as it is now. I talked to families who — when they were thinking about getting pregnant, just thinking about it, — they started calling around to childcare places because they know it’s so difficult to find. That’s just shameful in Wisconsin.”

Rodriguez also noted that she expected smears against her husband of nearly 20 years, a naturalized American citizen—but was no less disappointed to see anonymous posts questioning his documentation, when she said voters are more concerned about grocery prices and safe spaces for their kids.

“I mean, it’s racist and vile and all of those things,” Rodriguez said. “And it doesn’t help anyone thrive in Wisconsin, right?

If, as expected, other Democrats enter the race, Rodriguez will face them in a primary on August 11, 2026.

1️⃣  Happy (?) Birthday, Medicaid and Medicare – Watch my commentary on this week’s 60th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson signing into law America’s promise to its elderly and its most vulnerable that they will not be reduced to begging for help when they have health issues. It’s a promise that’s unraveling with the rise of a billionaire president and neutered Republicans in Congress.

2️⃣  Tammy Baldwin’s Water Bill – Watch our report from Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s appearance with us, describing her bipartisan bill to make more grants available in rural communities so that drinking water can be tested for contaminants and mitigation can be done if pollutants are found.

3️⃣  Tom Tiffany Beach Party – It sure seems like a weird coincidence that when constituents have shown up to protest at the Wausau office of Congressman Tom Tiffany, the sprinklers outside the building suddenly came on. It’s happened enough that some of his constituents came prepared recently. Sure enough, the sprinklers mysteriously turned on and the protesters were ready with swimsuits, umbrellas, and beach music.

Catch our radio show weekdays from 6-9 a.m. on our Facebook and YouTube pages as well as stations across Wisconsin thanks to our friends at Civic Media. If you can’t listen live, listen on-demand by subscribing on Spotify.

📱 And stay up to date all day with all of our team’s work through our social media feeds, including Instagram and TikTok.

🏁 Thanks for reading today’s update.

Have a great week.