2011 Milwaukee County Executive special election

2011 Milwaukee County Executive special election
	April 5, 2011
County Executive before election; Marvin Pratt (interim); Nonpartisan	Elected County Executive ; Chris Abele; Nonpartisan

The 2011 Milwaukee County Executive special election took place on April 5, 2011, following a primary election on February 15, 2011. County Executive Scott Walker was elected Governor of Wisconsin in 2010, triggering a special election. Walker resigned as County Executive on December 27, 2010, which temporarily elevated Lee Holloway, the Chairman of the County Board of Supervisors, as acting County Executive.^[1] Holloway subsequently named Marvin Pratt, the former acting Mayor of Milwaukee, as the interim County Executive until the special election took place.^[2]

Holloway ran in the special election, and was joined by philanthropist Chris Abele, State Representative Jeff Stone, former State Senator Jim Sullivan, and activist Ieshuh Griffin. Stone, a Republican, placed first in the primary with 43 percent of the vote. Abele narrowly defeated Stone for second place, 25–22 percent, and advanced to the general election with Stone.^[3] Abele defeated Stone by a wide margin, winning 60 percent of the vote.

Primary election

Candidates

Jeff Stone, State Representative^[4]
Chris Abele, businessman, philanthropist^[5]
Jim Sullivan, former State Senator^[6]
Lee Holloway, Chairman of the County Board of Supervisors, former Acting County Executive^[7]
Ieshuh Griffin, community activist^[8]

Declined

Sue Black, County Parks Director^[9]
Gerry Broderick, County Supervisor^[9]
Joseph Czarnezki, County Clerk
Dan Diliberti, County Treasurer^[9]
Marina Dimitrijevic, County Supervisor^[9]
Jon Richards, State Representative^[9]
Johnny Thomas, County Supervisor^[9]
Sheldon Wasserman, former State Representative^[9]

Results

Primary election results^[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Jeff Stone	42,113	42.88%
	Nonpartisan	Chris Abele	24,884	25.34%
	Nonpartisan	Jim Sullivan	21,266	21.65%
	Nonpartisan	Lee Holloway	8,287	8.44%
	Nonpartisan	Ieshuh Griffin	1,520	1.55%
	Write-in		141	0.14%
Total votes			98,211	100.00%

General election

Results

2011 Milwaukee County Executive special election results^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Chris Abele	137,380	59.64%
	Nonpartisan	Jeff Stone	92,223	40.03%
	Write-in		753	0.33%
Total votes			230,356	100.00%

References

^ Schultze, Steve (December 28, 2010). "Holloway offers ambitious agenda for a 30-day stint". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Schultze, Steve (January 25, 2011). "Holloway names Pratt interim Milwaukee County executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Pack, Darrin (February 16, 2011). "Stone, Abele set for Milwaukee county Executive primary". The Waukesha Freeman. Waukesha, Wisconsin. p. 3A. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
^ Quirmbach, Chuck (December 15, 2010). "Legislator throws his hat in the ring to be next Milwaukee County Executive". Wisconsin Public Radio. Madison, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Schultze, Steve (January 4, 2011). "Chris Larson formally launches bid to unseat Abele as county executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Kane, Eugene (January 22, 2011). "County executive field yields plenty of idea candidates". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Schultze, Steve (December 29, 2010). "Holloway confirms bid for executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ Sandler, Larry (December 27, 2010). "Controversial Ieshuh Griffin joins field for Milwaukee County exec". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Schultze, Steve (January 3, 2011). "Sue Black won't run for county executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
^ "2011 Election Results - 2-15-11 County Executive". Milwaukee County Clerk. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
^ "2011 Election Results - 4-5-11 County Executive (Special Election)". Milwaukee County Clerk. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2025.

[1] Schultze, Steve (December 28, 2010). "Holloway offers ambitious agenda for a 30-day stint". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[2] Schultze, Steve (January 25, 2011). "Holloway names Pratt interim Milwaukee County executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[3] Pack, Darrin (February 16, 2011). "Stone, Abele set for Milwaukee county Executive primary". The Waukesha Freeman. Waukesha, Wisconsin. p. 3A. Retrieved July 10, 2025.

[4] Quirmbach, Chuck (December 15, 2010). "Legislator throws his hat in the ring to be next Milwaukee County Executive". Wisconsin Public Radio. Madison, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[5] Schultze, Steve (January 4, 2011). "Chris Larson formally launches bid to unseat Abele as county executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[6] Kane, Eugene (January 22, 2011). "County executive field yields plenty of idea candidates". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[7] Schultze, Steve (December 29, 2010). "Holloway confirms bid for executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[8] Sandler, Larry (December 27, 2010). "Controversial Ieshuh Griffin joins field for Milwaukee County exec". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[won't_run-9] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Schultze, Steve (January 3, 2011). "Sue Black won't run for county executive". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Retrieved July 16, 2025.

[10] "2011 Election Results - 2-15-11 County Executive". Milwaukee County Clerk. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2025.

[11] "2011 Election Results - 4-5-11 County Executive (Special Election)". Milwaukee County Clerk. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2025.

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