Senate Republicans choose Sen. Julian Bradley to be next minority leader

Senate Republicans chose Sen. Julian Bradley (R-New Berlin) as minority leader Thursday. He will take office when lawmakers return in January.

Bradley succeeds Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg), who decided against running for reelection. He will lead a caucus of just 15 Republicans after Democrats swept the election on Tuesday night. Democrats added three seats to their caucus, winning a total of 18 seats to take the Senate majority for the first time since the 2008-09 legislative session.

Bradley said in a statement that the election results had “changed the math in the Senate, but they didn’t change what we believe or who we work for.”

Three Republicans were reportedly running for the position, according to WisPolitics. They were Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk), who had served as Senate president, Sen. Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point), who led Senate Republicans’ election efforts and had served as president pro tempore, and Sen. Eric Wimberger (R-Gillett).

Bradley was not one of the names reported in WisPolitics ahead of the caucus meeting, but he emerged as the chosen leader. He has served in the state Senate since 2020 and is the first Black Republican to serve in the Wisconsin Senate.

“Wisconsin families still want safe communities, good jobs and a government that lives within its means. We’re going to keep fighting for those goals and our state,” Bradley said. “I’m grateful to my colleagues for the trust they’ve placed in me. Leading this caucus is a responsibility I don’t take lightly.”

Bradley said the caucus will be focused on “protecting taxpayers and expanding opportunity for every Wisconsinite” in the new session. During his time in office, he has served on the Joint Finance Committee, as the vice chair of the administrative rules committee and as the chair of the utilities, technology and tourism committee.

Sen.-elect Erik Severson, a Republican from Osceola, said in a statement that Senate Republicans needed a “new path forward” following the election results.

“While I respect the work of the previous leadership team, we need a fresh approach to how
things are being done in Madison as we move forward together in a drastically reshaped
political climate,” Severson said. “While the leadership team may have changed, our focus on
common-sense policies that put taxpayers ahead of liberal special interests will not change.”

Bradley, 45, was born in Baltimore before moving to Wisconsin in 1992. He was previously a professional wrestler and a realtor and operations manager for Northwestern Mutual and CenturyLink.

Sen. Romaine Quinn (R-Birchwood) was chosen to be the assistant minority leader.

Originally published by Wisconsin Examiner, a nonprofit news organization.