AD 86: Incumbent John Spiros (R) vs John Small (D)

Located in north-central Wisconsin, Assembly District 86 district is comprised the northern half of Wood County and parts of central and southwest Marathon County and northwest Portage County. It includes the cities of Marshfield and Pittsville, and the villages of Arpin, Auburndale, Edgar, Fenwood, Hewitt, Junction City, Marathon City, Milladore, Rudolph, Spencer, Stratford, and Vesper.

The solid Republican district is not considered one of the competitive races in the Assembly, but as far as primary races in the GOP this one was a real barn burner.

The race comes down to the primary in reality and two Incumbents were drawn into a race that attracted an area dairy farmer with a special interest to the field. Spiros takes the primary with 43% of the vote. Rozar had 31% and Spindler had 25%.

But in the end, this race will come down to the battle of the Johns, as Democrat John Small tries to take down Republican John Spiros.

John Spiros (R-Marshfield)

First elected to the assembly in 2012. City of Marshfield alderman, 2005–13. Spiros did run un-opposed in 2020 and in 2022. Former police officer is what I read in a local newspaper article about the race, although I had not read that prior and it is not in his biography?

Rep John Spiros (R-Marshfield) representing Wisconsin’s 86th Assembly District and Chair of the 2019 Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety which is holding up the Legalize Opportunity – Legalize Marijuana Bill (AB 220). In an interview before being re-elected in 2018, he seemed to think CBD Oil was the miracle cure and medical marijuana was not needed, while dismissing the opportunity marijuana reform presents. 

Oct 2018 However, I am reticent to legalize recreational marijuana until law enforcement has way to calculate how “high” someone is to determine their level of impairment, much like we do with alcohol. Additionally, new research has shown that not only is recreational marijuana not the economic boost originally projected, but incidents involving car crashes are higher in states where marijuana is legalized, not to mention car insurance rates are higher. So I am waiting to see how this plays out before voting to legalize it in our state.

Early in 2019 he also seemed to know his Republican colleagues were working on their caucus to put a medical marijuana bill together.   Spring of 2019 GOP Survey shows 68% support for medical marijuana reform. In December 2019, the Assembly Republicans prefiled a bill for the 2020 legislative session to create a medical marijuana program in Wisconsin (Assembly Bill 750) which he did not co-sponsor.  

In 2021-22, he did cosponsor AB 1067 in 2021 – Republican Medical Marijuana Bill.

And in 2024 Spiros showed up as a co-sponsor of the controversial medical marijuana bill presented by the Republicans.

Rep. Spiros barely received a C- rating from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML)

Spiros Facebook Page and Website

VS

John Small (D – Marathon)

John Small was a 2016 Democratic Primary Candidate and had a WI Eye Interview archived. Marathon’s village president in 2005 and was reelected six times for a total of seven two-year terms. During his time in village government, he served as chair of the planning commission and finance committee and was a member of the Marathon City Utility Commission.

Small also served 10 years on the Marathon County Board of Supervisors, representing District 33. He chaired the Education and Economic Development Committee and was also a member of the Executive, Environmental Resources, and Forestry and Recreation committees.

On August 12th I had a communicate with candidate Small and he emailed me this: “I have not, as of yet, properly researched a position on marijuana. As a Village President, a County Board Supervisor, and President of the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, we often used regulations from each other to solve issues in our area.

Therefore, I need to analyze states that have legalized marijuana for solvable problems to overcome. Thus far, I do not know of any states trying to repeal their laws. My thoughts are to legalize marijuana similar to alcohol laws.”

There are 99 state Assembly seats and 16 state Senate seats on the ballot this November. The ACLU of Wisconsin sent a questionnaire to all candidates and published their answers on August 21st.

We are not surprised that he answered YES to the ACLU question: Do you support the legalization, regulation, and taxation of marijuana for recreational use by adults 21 and over in Wisconsin?

Please visit his campaign facebook page for more information on this candidate.

Stay tuned and get active!

I will provide you additional 2024 Wisconsin State Election coverage throughout the campaign season. This next election is extremely important for marijuana reform and I will continue to bring you information as more candidates make their political moves.

In the event that we end up with divided government in the 2024-25 legislation session, the official formation of The Wisconsin Cannabis Caucus would be a must first step towards reform. The official establishment of this Caucus will represent the growing, bipartisan support in Wisconsin.

Although session as ended we still urge you to contact your elected officials. The top four action alerts are still functionable on The Wisconsin Cannabis Activist Action Network for you immediate use.

Sources: CNanalysis, WisPolitics, Davesredistircing, PeoplesMaps