State Sen. Robert Cowles of Allouez won't seek reelection after 36 years in office
Sophia Voight
GREEN BAY - State Sen. Robert Cowles, R-Allouez, announced Monday he will not be seeking reelection to Senate District 2 after serving 36 years in office.
"I’ve enjoyed the opportunity I’ve had to meet people in the state Capitol and throughout Wisconsin who share my love for the state we call home," Cowles said in a media release. "From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank everyone who wakes up every day working to make our great state an even better place.”
Cowles has served Senate District 2 since 1987 and is the longest currently serving member of the Wisconsin Senate. Prior to the Senate, he served five years in the state Assembly.
He is currently the chair of the Committee on Natural Resources and Energy and the vice-chair of the Committee on Transportation and Local Government.
"The people of northeast Wisconsin have been endlessly kind to me," Cowles said in the release. "From entrusting me with an amazing responsibility to serve them, the civility they’ve largely showed even in disagreement, and the countless times I’ve been welcomed into events, meetings and tours, I’ve met so many exceptional people that always reminded me what the work of a legislator is truly all about."
The senator plans to continue serving the district until his term expires in January.
The new maps created a Senate district around Green Bay and its surrounding suburbs that drew all three area senators – Eric Wimberger, Andre Jacque and Cowles – into the new Senate District 30.
Cowles previously told the Green Bay Press-Gazette he planned to move back into his District 2 boundaries and run for reelection this year.
Cowles' colleague, state Sen. Eric Wimberger, R-Green Bay, announced last week he plans to run in the newly drawn boundaries of Senate District 2.
Jacque, R-De Pere, announced in early March that he is running for the 8th Congressional District.
Senate District 2 had covered Allouez, Howard, northwestern Brown County, parts of Shawano County and the northern half of Outagamie County; now it reaches farther east and north covering Suamico, Oconto Falls and Keshena.
Following Cowles' announcement, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, said in a news release, "Sen. Cowles has been a tireless advocate for northeastern Wisconsin in his 42 years of service in the state Assembly and state Senate. The Senate will miss his ability to build broad consensus on complicated policy matters and his commitment to the people of our state."
Sophia Voight covers local government and politics in the Fox Valley for The Post-Crescent. She can be reached with feedback and story tips at svoight@postcrescent.com.