Democrat Habush Sinykin defeats Duey Stroebel in hard-fought Wisconsin Senate District 8

(This story was updated to accurately reflect the most current information.)

Democratic challenger Jodi Habush Sinykin narrowly defeated Republican incumbent Duey Stroebel for Wisconsin's Senate District 8 seat in one of the most competitive state elections under the new legislative maps that broke spending records.

The Associated Press called the race for Habush Sinykin on Wednesday evening after Habush Sinykin's narrow margin of 1,788 votes with around 99% of the votes counted put her in a lead Stroebel couldn't overcome.

In total, she received 50.8%, or 60,471 votes, in comparison with Stroebel's 49.2%, or 58,683 votes.

Habush Sinykin declared victory early Wednesday morning around 3 a.m., saying her campaign is "the culmination of building a strong sense of community and solidarity with people across this district, as we’ve worked together towards a shared vision for our state.”

“To everyone who helped spread the word, knocked on doors, wrote postcards, hosted events, and contributed to our campaign – you made this happen," she said in the statement.

Stroebel conceded the race on Wednesday morning, thanking all of the people who shared support for his campaign.

"We had many volunteers who devoted hours knocking doors, writing postcards, and helping in any way that they could. It means so much to see the help we have received," Stroebel wrote in a statement.

"Unfortunately, we came up a bit short. Despite our tireless work and dedication, the voters have decided to go in a different direction."

This isn't the first time Habush Sinykin has fought for the seat in Senate District 8.

During a 2023 special election, Sinykin ran against Republican incumbent Dan Knodl, losing by less than 2 percentage points in a district with a 55.6% modeled GOP lean, according to an analysis by Marquette University Lubar Center research fellow John Johnson.

The new legislative maps trimmed that lean down to 53%, raising questions from Republicans and enthusiasm from Democrats over whether the seat would flip parties under the new maps.

Stroebel and Habush Sinykin's platforms agreed on lowering costs with targeted tax cuts but diverged on several other key issues to voters, such as reproductive health care freedoms and funding levels for schools, local governments and environmental issues.

Habush Sinykin, an environmental attorney, centered her campaign on reproductive health care freedoms and increasing investments in education and local governments.

She also took shots at Stroebel's record, particularly his support for Wisconsin's 1849 abortion ban, as well as his obstruction of millions in already-approved investments for education and addressing Wisconsin's PFAS, or "forever chemicals," problem during his time a vice chair of the Joint Finance Committee responsible for dispersing those funds.

Stroebel, who previously worked in real estate management and development in Cedarburg, focused his campaign on legislative wins achieved during his time in the state Senate, including support for the $525 billion bipartisan affordable housing package in 2023.

He also touted his support for the bipartisan 2023 Shared Revenue Act, which modified shared revenue formulas to boost funding to local governments and mostly repealed Wisconsin's personal property tax, a longtime target of Stroebel's.

Stroebel was technically the incumbent for the 20th Senate District, which he has held since 2015, but was running in District 8 due to the redrawn districts.

The new district added Port Washington, more of Grafton and excluded chunks of the old district west of Menomonee Falls. It also includes Whitefish Bay, Fox Point, River Hills and Bayside in Milwaukee County; Mequon, Cedarburg and Thiensville in Ozaukee County; Butler, Lannon and Menomonee Falls in Waukesha County; and Germantown in Washington County.

Habush Sinykin, an attorney, ran for the 8th District seat in the 2023 special election, narrowly losing to Republican incumbent Dan Knodl. Knodl captured the 24th District Assembly seat Nov. 5.

The two candidates are also locked in a legal battle over advertisements Habush Sinykin ran claiming Stroebel's did not support access to IVF and contraception, which he denies.

The race also broke election spending records in Wisconsin.

By mid-October, it was already the most expensive state legislative race in Wisconsin history, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.

Senate Democratic Leader Dianne Hesselbein released a statement welcoming Habush Sinykin to legislature.

“Jodi and her team ran an incredible campaign, centering the values and ideas of voters in the 8th Senate District. As the underdog, she did not shy away from the hard work necessary to win this race," Hesselbein said.

"Jodi’s deep ties to the community, thoughtful decision-making, and experience as an attorney will allow her to effectively legislate for the needs of this community.”

Contact Claudia Levens at [email protected]. Follow her on X at @levensc13.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Democrat Habush Sinykin defeats Stroebel in state Senate District 8