David Cullen re-elected Milwaukee County treasurer, holding off challenge from Ted Chisholm

Milwaukee County's Treasurer's Office won't be facing a big shakeup this election cycle after incumbent David Cullen posted an overwhelming victory against political newcomer Ted Chisholm on Tuesday.

Cullen, who has served as treasurer since 2014, won at a 2-to-1 margin over Chisholm, the 26-year-old son of Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, who ran as a reform candidate.

In a statement on Facebook, Chisholm conceded the race before all the absentee ballots were counted.

In an unexpectedly contentious race, Chisholm and Cullen questioned each other's ability to run the usually quiet office that handles county-related monies, investing funds and delinquent real estate taxes.

Cullen will soon reap the benefits of a recent pay bump of 11.5% that will see salaries for three of the county's top elected officials — treasurer, county clerk and register of deeds — jump to $102,000 in 2025.

Cullen previously served as a Democratic state legislator and a member of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors, where he was co-chair of the county's finance, personnel and audit committee. Cullen is also an attorney, having passed the Wisconsin bar exam in 1984.

He recently came under fire in the lead-up to the primary election after he sent out roughly 40,000 taxpayer-funded mailers in April featuring a handful of pictures of him with his grandchildren.

Denying that the mailers were campaign-related, the Journal Sentinel later learned that his wife had spent more than $1,000 for a list of county voters who voted in the partisan primary races in 2020, 2022 and 2023., which Cullen later expensed and was repaid by his campaign committee. Cullen never responded to questions asking if he would return the money.

With no Republicans running in the race, the Democratic primary decided who would hold office.

Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or at [email protected]. Follow her on X @Vanessa_Swales.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: David Cullen reelected as Milwaukee County treasurer