Special Election Called For Northside Aldermanic Seat

Want to run for alderman? At least one Common Council seat will appear on the fall ballot.

A special election was called Wednesday by Common Council President Jose G. Perez to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Mayor Cavalier Johnson. The newly-elected mayor represented the city’s second council district from 2016 until winning a special election to serve as mayor.

A primary would be held Aug. 9 alongside the already-scheduled partisan primary, if three or more candidates qualify for the ballot. A general election will take place Nov. 8, again alongside the already scheduled fall partisan election. The council is nonpartisan; no party declaration is made.

Generally speaking, the oddly-shaped second district runs from W. Good Hope Rd. south to W. Capitol Dr. and from N. 51st St. to N. 107th St. The bulk of the district falls between W. Mill Rd., W. Hampton Ave., N. 60th St. and N. 91st St.

The district includes the Columbus Park, Valhalla, Silver Swan, Little Menomonee Parkway, Menomonee River Hills, Vogel Park and Westlawn Gardens neighborhoods.

The winner will be elected to the remainder of Johnson’s term, which lasts through April 2024. Council members are elected to four-year terms and paid a base salary of $73,222. They serve on the city’s 15-member legislative body.

The election will pose a special challenge for the Milwaukee Election Commission and voters. Under state law, it will take place according to the council’s prior district boundaries that Johnson was elected under, not the newly-adopted map. Voters may live in new wards that are eligible to vote in the race, but on blocks within the ward that are outside the old boundaries, rendering them ineligible.

Come 2024 and the regularly scheduled election, both the new wards and new district map will be in place.

The 2012 map under which the special election will be held was created when the district had 41,707 residents of which 67.3% of voting age residents were Black, 21.3% white, 6.9% Asian and 3.2% Hispanic.

The new district has 38,739 residents, from which the voting age population is 70.5% Black, 13.5% white, 10.2% Asian and 3.9% Hispanic according to a Legislative Reference Bureau report. It is also home to one of the city’s highest-profile residents: the mayor.

Another council district could soon be vacated. Johnson nominated District 3 Alderman Nik Kovac to serve as his budget director. Assuming the nomination proceeds as expected, Kovac would resign in time for the election to replace him to take place as part of the fall election. The district includes the East Side, most of Riverwest and the northern edge of Downtown.

Individuals interested in running for either office should contact the Milwaukee Election Commission.

2nd District Map