Hijacking Campaign 2025 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2025
March 16, 2025
WEAC Region 7 PAC, formerly called the Southeast United Educators PAC, is the political action committee (PAC) for the Madison regional branch of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), the state's largest teachers union. WEAC and its various regional political action committees usually support Democratic candidates for legislative and statewide offices through outside electioneering activities and direct PAC and conduit contributions.
Less than three weeks before the April 1st spring elections, the PAC first reported making independent expenditures in the Wisconsin State Supreme Court and State Superintendent of Public Instruction elections, in addition to a number of suburban Milwaukee school board races. WEAC Region 7 spent over $3,700, split about evenly between the two state races, to mail campaign literature supporting Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford for the court and incumbent State Superintendent Jill Underly.
Crawford faces Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel for an open seat on the high court. Although the court is officially nonpartisan, Crawford is supported by Democrats and Schimel, who served as the state’s Republican attorney general just before his appointment to the judiciary, by the GOP. Liberals hold a 4-3 majority on the court won in the 2023 election, and the election of Schimel would hand control back to conservatives.
The office of Wisconsin State Superintendent of Public Instruction is also officially nonpartisan but Underly, who was first elected in 2021, is supported by the state Democratic party while her opponent, educational consultant and former charter school lobbyist Brittany Kinser has received Republican backing.
Last active election: 2023