Louis Molepske

Louis John Molepske Jr. (born January 6, 1974) is an American attorney, judge, and Democratic politician. He is a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Portage County, Wisconsin, since 2022. He previously served nine years as district attorney, and was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly for ten years before that.

Early life and education

Louis Molepske was born and raised in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. He graduated from Stevens Point Area Senior High School in 1993 and went on to earn his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He then attended Marquette University Law School, where he earned his J.D. in 2001. While in high school, he wrote for a student section included in the Stevens Point daily newspaper, the Stevens Point Journal.

Political career

After completing law school, he went to work in the city government of Stevens Point. He first worked as an assistant to his father, the city attorney, and then as an assistant to the mayor, Gary Wescott, and finally as a special prosecutor in the office of the district attorney, Tom Eagon.

In 2002, incumbent state senator Kevin Shibilski was indicted for fraud, which led to his resignation and the election of state representative Julie Lassa as his replacement. Lassa's elevation created a vacancy in Wisconsin's 71st Assembly district, and Molepske chose to enter the race for the open seat. He narrowly prevailed in the low-turnout special election, receiving 37% of the vote in a four-way race. At the time he was sworn in, Molepske was the second youngest state legislator at 29 years old. He went on to win re-election four times.

In the April 2012 election, Molepske's former boss, district attorney Tom Eagon, was elected a Wisconsin circuit court judge. Molepske soon announced that, rather than running for another term in the Assembly, he would instead run for district attorney. He faced only one opponent in the race, the senior assistant district attorney, Veronica Isherwood, in the Democratic primary. Molepske won 65% of the vote in the primary and was unopposed in the general election. He was re-elected without opposition in 2016 and 2020.

In the Fall of 2021, incumbent Wisconsin circuit court judge Robert J. Shannon filed his paperwork to indicate he would not run for re-election in 2022. Molepske entered the race for the judicial post; he defeated attorney Stephen W. Sawyer in the Spring general election and was sworn in in August 2022.

Personal life and family

Louis Molepske is a fifth-generation resident of Portage County, Wisconsin. His father is also an attorney and was in public office as city attorney of Stevens Point; his grandfather was a prominent realtor.

Louis Molepske married Raquel Vechinski, a nurse practitioner from Wisconsin Rapids, in October 2013. They have three children now and reside in Stevens Point.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Assembly (2003–2010)

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Wisconsin Assembly, 71st District Special Election, 2003

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
Special Election, July 22, 2003
		Jackie Szehner	2,492	35.17%
		Amy Heart	1,011	14.27%
		Jo Seiser (write-in)	946	13.35%
Plurality			136	1.92%	-43.01%
Total votes			7,086	100.0%	-60.69%

Portage County District Attorney (2012, 2016, 2020)

Template:Election box write-in with party link no changeTemplate:Election box plurality no changeTemplate:Election box write-in with party link no change

Portage County, Wisconsin, District Attorney Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic Primary, August 14, 2012
		Louis J. Molepske Jr.		64.86%
		Veronica Isherwood		35.06%
Total votes				100.0%
General Election, November 6, 2012
		Louis J. Molepske Jr.		97.42%
Total votes				100.0%

Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge (2022)

Template:Election box write-in with party link no changeTemplate:Election box plurality no change

Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge, Portage Circuit, Branch 2 Election, 2022

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
General Election, April 5, 2022
		Louis J. Molepske Jr.		56.17%
		Stephen W. Sawyer		43.71%
Total votes				100.0%

External links

• Official (Assembly) website (Archived February 20, 2012)
• Louis Molepske for State Assembly official campaign website
• Molepske for Judge 2022 campaign website
• Profile at Vote Smart
• Template:Ballotpedia
• Follow the Money - Louis Molepske
  • 2008 2006 2004 campaign contributions
• Campaign 2008 campaign contributions at Wisconsin Democracy Campaign