ALEC-FreedomWorks Legislator of the Week
Senator Leah Vukmir is a first-generation Wisconsinite and is currently serving her second term representing the 5th Senate District as the Assistant Majority Leader for the Wisconsin State Senate. She graduated from Marquette University with a degree in nursing and earned her Master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
Before her role in the state legislature, she had a strong investment in her daughter’s education and became continually involved in seeking the best educational options for not only her daughter but for students in her classes. Soon her involvement and continued push for quality education options led her to run for a spot in Wisconsin’s Legislature.
Sen. Vukmir was elected in 2002 to the Wisconsin State Assembly where she served for eight years before being elected in 2010 to the State Senate and re-elected in 2014. She serves as the chairman of the Health and Human Services Committee and sits on the Joint Finance Committee and the Educational committee. Sen. Vukmir is an active member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and served as the 2016 national chairman. Sen. Vukmir now chairs the newest center at ALEC, the Center to Protect Free Speech.
During her time in the legislature, Sen. Vukmir has been a leading advocate for school choice and expanding opportunities to all students across Wisconsin. Her vigorous work has recently led to the creation of Wisconsin’s Special Needs Scholarship Program that focuses on providing families with special-needs children the ability to attend a school that fosters their specific talents. She has also proposed legislation aimed at reducing violent crime and increasing public safety efforts across Wisconsin.
In addition to working in the State Legislature, Sen. Vukmir also teaches at a home health care agency and is a Registered Nurse. Her expansive background in health care including previously serving as a Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner has enabled her to help enact legislation that has strengthened health care in Wisconsin. As a strong and passionate advocate for advancing conservative principles and policies, Sen. Vukmir supports free market and free enterprise that allows prosperity to flourish. Her tireless efforts combatting special interests have helped taxpayers save billions of dollars and have helped Wisconsin become a right-to-work state.
In her personal life, Sen. Vukmir is an active member of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church and recently moved back to her hometown of Brookfield where she enjoys spending time with her rescued German shepherd, Sophie. Sen. Vukmir also has two children Elena, who works in the investment management industry in Manhattan and Nicholas, a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army.