Assembly District 47 covers Fitchburg and parts of Southeastern Dane County, from Stoughton, McFarland, the towns of Rutland, Dunn, Dunkirk, Albion, and Pleasant Springs. It’s both urban and rural, with sprawling suburban subdivisions and dense apartment complexes.

Joe Maldonado is a candidate running to represent this area in the Wisconsin legislature. On today’s show, he speaks with host Carousel Bayrd about his priorities for the district. Maldonado currently serves on the Fitchburg City Council and has a background in youth development. He says he wants to be a voice for historically underrepresented and working class voters. And he believes that “youth have the ideas, and youth have the solutions.”

As Dane County grows, Maldonado says it’s important for municipalities to control their own transit systems and to find ways to use the 3 billion dollar state surplus toward youth programming, like the new teen center in Fitchburg. He wants to keep legislators from drawing gerrymandered districts again. Joe says that voters he talks to care about reproductive rights, legalizing cannabis, expanding healthcare, and supporting teachers and students. 

Joe Maldonado was born in Milwaukee to a working class family. He participated in precollege programming through the YMCA in Milwaukee before becoming involved in youth programming himself. He has worked for the United Way of Dane County and now serves as the bilingual community youth development program manager for the University of Wisconsin-Extension. 

Note: Candidate Randy Udell declined to be interviewed about the race.

Photo courtesy of Sara Gabler/WORT.

The post Election Coverage with Assembly District 47 Candidate Joe Maldonado appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.