DPMC Special Election Update
Last week I wrote about why to join the Democratic Party of Milwaukee County in time for the special election. After watching David Crowley and Tony Evers join forces with conservative Republicans to relentlessly attack and narrowly defeat Francesca Hong, I suspect the appeal of joining the Democratic Party has declined significantly, but the logic of it hasn’t.
In Tuesday’s primary, Wisconsin voters chose fear and money over people. They chose data centers. They chose developers. It was a cowardly, disgusting, and excruciating process. None of that changes the political realities I described last week. Our path toward reform, socialism, and victory includes contesting power within the party system, and eventually winning.
On Monday, we received an update from DPMC about the special election happening on Thursday August 20th. The email contained a number of details and developments. The most important of which are these:
Date: Thursday, August 20, 2026
Time: 6 PM
Location: Greenfield City Hall
7325 W Forest Home Ave.
Greenfield, WI 53220This is an important meeting for our organization, and we strongly encourage all eligible members to attend and participate.
Important Membership Deadline
Article VI, Section 3 of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin Constitution requires that in order to vote in a county party you must have been a member for a minimum of 5 days. Since the election is being held on August 20th, you must be a WisDems member by Saturday, August 15th. [Beagle note: this possibly means BEFORE Saturday the 15th, in other words, by midnight Friday! So sign up now!] If you do not have active membership by that date you will not be eligible to participate in the August 20th special election.
If you are unsure whether your membership is current, please reach out to our Membership Secretary, Eddie Phanichkul at eddie@mkedems.
Here is the link to join the County Party. It also counts for state party membership. It only costs $10-25, but for August they are doing a special where you can donate any amount! Keep a screen shot of your receipt to make sure you get in. I’ve included the full email below, but didn’t want to bury this lead.
Reform Starts Here
If you’re mad about Tuesday and want better politics and processes in our party and in our state, attending this meeting and voting against the establishment candidates is a useful step to take.
Get your membership in order. Bring your ActBlue receipt for your membership fees. Show up early to get verified and receive a ballot. Be prepared for some bullshit. We’re hoping there is less drama and cheating than last time, but c’mon, it is the Democratic Party. Reactionary centrists are gonna reactionary-centrist, right?
Speaking of… my last article may have been inaccurate about ranked choice. All the state party elections are done by ranked choice, and since DPMC doesn’t have bylaws, they should be following the state party rules (the above-cited 5 days rule comes from the state constitution, for example). The last county party election was done with multiple rounds of voting instead of a single round and ranked choice. Its not clear exactly how this election will work, but the state party constitution does require that the winner have a majority.
That means that, whether through a single ranked choice vote, or multiple rounds, if the top vote-getter doesn’t have a majority, then the lowest will be removed and another count (or round of voting) will occur. In other words, candidates do not risk spoiling each others’ chances the way Kelda Roys spoiled Fran Hong’s victory on Tuesday.
[NOTE: this section was revised after publishing when I learned more about the process.]
Some good news: the interim executive board did set up a Nominations and Elections Committee, which includes staff from the state party who will run the election. That should help it be more streamlined and successful.
The available positions are: Chair, Vice Chair, Treasurer, Corresponding Secretary, Recording Secretary. I’ll copy / paste descriptions of those roles from the DPMC email below.
Potential Candidates
The previous Vice Chair KeJuane Jennings has assumed the interim role of chair, and we heard he is planning to run for it. If he fails, he will have the option to then run for Vice Chair. The executive board appointed three other interim people to serve in the other roles: Colin Roberts, LaKeshia Myers, and Joe Magestro. We hear that at least Magestro intends to run for his role permanently.
We are happy to publish information about any candidates running for any position, and help connect folks with each other. Just email us at MilwaukeeBeagle@gmail.com
The full Email from DPMC
Dear Milwaukee County Democrats,
Over the past month, the Democratic Party of Milwaukee County (DPMC) has gone through an important period of leadership transition and organizational change. Our goal throughout this process has been to maintain continuity, keep the party moving forward, and make sure our members have clear information about what is happening and how they can participate.
With our upcoming special election approaching, we want to provide members with a comprehensive update on the transition, interim leadership, election procedures, membership requirements, upcoming events, and several new processes we are putting in place.
1. Leadership Transition: What Has Happened
July 13, 2026 — Chair Resignation and Leadership Transition
On July 6, 2026, Chair Brett Timmerman submitted his resignation from the Chair position, effective at 11:59 p.m. on Monday, July 13th.
In his resignation notice, Brett expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve alongside the party’s Executive Board, committee chairs, volunteers, and members. He explained that, after considerable reflection, he had decided to step aside after weighing the demands of the Chair position against his responsibilities to his family, business, and personal well-being.
Brett also committed to supporting an orderly and professional transition during his remaining time as Chair and to working with the Executive Board to ensure the transition followed the Democratic Party of Milwaukee County’s Constitution.
July 14, 2026 — Interim Chair
Under Article IV, Section 6 of the DPMC Constitution, the Vice Chair presides over party meetings in the absence of the Chair. If the office of County Chair becomes vacant, the Vice Chair temporarily assumes the duties of County Chair until the vacancy is filled through a special election.
Accordingly, following the effective resignation of Chair Brett Timmerman, Vice Chair KeJuane Jennings assumed the duties of County Chair on an interim basis.
July 15, 2026 — Treasurer and Corresponding Secretary Vacancies
Two additional Executive Board vacancies took effect on July 15.
Treasurer: On July 7th, Treasurer Brady Coulthard submitted his resignation, effective upon the filing of the DPMC’s July 15th campaign finance report. Brady committed to completing the July campaign finance report and facilitating an orderly transfer of financial records, banking access, and other Treasurer responsibilities to his successor.
Corresponding Secretary: On July 9th, Corresponding Secretary Marissa Nowling submitted her resignation, effective July 15th. Marissa committed to providing the procedures, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and other documentation she developed during her tenure to support an orderly transition.
Both officers expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve the party and committed to supporting a smooth transition of their respective responsibilities.
July 20, 2026 — Interim Executive Board Elections
Pursuant to their responsibility as laid out in Article IV, Section 2 of the DPMC Constitution, the Executive Board met on July 20th to appoint three members to serve in interim Executive Board positions.
Interim Recording Secretary — Colin Roberts Colin Roberts was appointed to serve as Interim Recording Secretary. Colin brings existing Democratic Party leadership experience through his work with the Young Democrats of Wisconsin. In this role, he is responsible for maintaining accurate records and minutes of Executive Board and membership meetings and supporting the party’s administrative operations.
Interim Corresponding Secretary — LaKeshia Myers Lakeshia Myers was appointed to serve as Interim Corresponding Secretary following Marissa Nowling’s resignation. In this role, she will oversee party correspondence and meeting notices and help ensure members remain informed throughout the leadership transition.
Interim Treasurer — Joe Magestro Joe Magestro was appointed to serve as Interim Treasurer following Brady Coulthard’s resignation. In this role, he will help oversee the party’s financial records, reporting, and financial operations during the transition.
These interim appointments are intended to maintain continuity and allow the party to continue functioning effectively while we work through the leadership transition and upcoming elections.
We are grateful to Colin, Lakeshia, and Joe for stepping forward to serve the party during this important period of transition.
2. Special Election for Open Seats
The special election for Chair, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, and Corresponding Secretary of the Democratic Party of Milwaukee County will take place during our upcoming membership meeting.
Date: Thursday, August 20, 2026 Time: 6 PM Location: Greenfield City Hall, 7325 W Forest Home Ave. Greenfield, WI 53220
This is an important meeting for our organization, and we strongly encourage all eligible members to attend and participate.
Important Membership Deadline
Article VI, Section 3 of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin Constitution requires that in order to vote in a county party you must have been a member for a minimum of 5 days. Since the election is being held on August 20th, you must be a WisDems member by Saturday, August 15th. If you do not have active membership by that date you will not be eligible to participate in the August 20th special election.
If you are unsure whether your membership is current, please reach out to our Membership Secretary, Eddie Phanichkul at eddie@mkedems.
Bring Your Membership Receipt
If you recently paid your membership donation through ActBlue, please bring your ActBlue receipt or payment confirmation with you to the meeting.
A screenshot or electronic copy will be sufficient for verification.
This will help us make the check-in and voting process as efficient as possible.
3. Description of Open Positions
Description of Open Positions
We believe that the membership of the DPMC should be fully aware of the responsibilities and time commitments of the open positions so that they can make an informed vote about who they think will be the best candidate to fulfill those responsibilities. To that end, we have put together a brief description of each role below.
1. Chair
2. Vice Chair
3. Treasurer
4. Corresponding Secretary
5. Recording Secretary
[NOTE: the email did not include the promised descriptions.]
4. Vice Chair Special Election
Following the election of the Chair, we will conduct a special election for Vice Chair during the same membership meeting.
The sequence will be:
1. Chair election ↓ 2. Chair assumes office ↓ 3. Vice Chair special election
Special Election Committee
A three-member Nominations and Elections Committee (NEC) will oversee the special election in coordination with Democratic Party of Wisconsin staff and in accordance with the DPMC and state party governing documents.
The NEC will be responsible for establishing and communicating the election rules and timeline; issuing the call for nominations; accepting nominations and verifying candidate eligibility; communicating the process to candidates and members; preparing and administering the ballot; overseeing the election meeting; collecting and counting ballots; verifying and announcing the results; and addressing any election-related disputes. The committee will also ensure the election is conducted in an open, fair, and transparent manner.
Election Night Process
The special election meeting will generally proceed as follows:
The Interim Chair welcomes members and opens the meeting.
The Secretary confirms quorum.
The Interim Chair introduces the special election and turns the election proceedings over to the NEC Chair.
The NEC Chair introduces the committee, reviews the election rules and process, and makes any necessary announcements.
Voting takes place.
The NEC collects, counts, and verifies the ballots.
The NEC Chair announces the results and explains how the results will be communicated to members and WisDems.
The NEC Chair concludes the election and transfers the meeting back to the newly elected County Chair.
The new County Chair offers brief remarks and concludes the membership meeting.
A photo opportunity and any appropriate candidate or organizational announcements may follow.
Additional information about nominations and the election process will be provided to members before the meeting.
