Robert Brooks (born July 13, 1965) is an American businessman and

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politician from

Saukville, Wisconsin Saukville is a village in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. Located on the Milwaukee River with a district along Interstate 43, the community is a suburb in the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 4,451 at the 2010 census. ...

. He is state representative for the 60th district of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

, since January 2015.

Biography

Born in Rockford, Illinois, Brooks moved with his parents to

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

and graduated from Parkview High School in

Orfordville, Wisconsin Orfordville is a village in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States, at the intersection of Highway 11, Highway 213, and the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad. The population was 1,442 at the 2010 census. History The origin of its name came when a ...

. He went on to attend the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse, but did not graduate. He went to work in the real estate business, and owned a number of restaurants, taverns, and rental properties. Since 1996, he has managed his real estate through Brooks Investment Group LLC.

Political career

From 2002 through 2014, Brooks was an elected member of the

Ozaukee County Ozaukee County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,503. Its county seat is Port Washington, making it one of three Wisconsin counties on Lake Michigan not to have a county seat with the same ...

Board of Supervisors; he was chairman from 2004 through 2013. While serving on the county board, he was a commissioner on the South Eastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission and was a member of the board of directors of the Wisconsin Mutual Insurance Company. In 2014, incumbent State Representative

Duey Stroebel Sherburn Duane "Duey" Stroebel Jr. (born September 1, 1959) is an American politician and businessman. He is a Republican member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 20th district since 2015. He previously served in the Wisconsin Assembly, ...

announced he would run for

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

rather than seek another term in the Assembly. Brooks jumped into the race for the open seat in the

. In the Republican primary, he defeated Jean Opitz, the wife of former State Representative David W. Opitz. He was unopposed in the general election, and went on to begin his term in January 2015. He went on to win reelection in 2016 by a wide margin, with only an independent opponent. In the 2017–2018 session of the Assembly, Brooks was elected by his caucus as the assistant majority leader. However, he ran into problems in 2018 when the '' Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' reported that Brooks had made "sexual comments to two female state lawmakers and a racial remark to a Latina legislator". Brooks attributed the comments to the influence of alcohol, apologized, and resigned his leadership position in the assembly. Republican Governor Scott Walker, in the middle of his own reelection campaign, called for Brooks to resign from the Assembly. Despite the pressure from inside his own party, Brooks resisted calls to resign and was reelected in the 2018 general election. He faced his first

primary challenge In U.S. politics, a primary challenge is when an incumbent holding elective office is challenged by a member of their own political party in a primary election. Such events, known informally as "being primaried," are noteworthy and not frequent ...

as an incumbent in 2020, but Brooks prevailed again, taking 75% of the Republican primary vote. He was again unopposed in the 2020 general election.

Electoral history

References

External links

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Robert Brooks
at WisconsinVote.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Robert 1965 births Living people Politicians from Rockford, Illinois People from Saukville, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–La Crosse alumni Businesspeople from Wisconsin County supervisors in Wisconsin Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly 21st-century American politicians