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Scott Lee Gunderson (born October 24, 1956) is an American farmer, Republican politician, and former small business owner from Racine County, Wisconsin. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly for 16 years, representing the 83rd Assembly district from 1995 to 2011. He left office to accept a job in the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Since leaving state office, he has been active locally, running Waterford's Fourth of July and Memorial Day parades, and the Racine County Fair.[1]
Scott Gunderson | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 83rd district | |
| In office January 2, 1995 – January 4, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Kathleen A. Krosnicki |
| Succeeded by | Dave Craig |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 24, 1956 Burlington, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Lisa A. Nemath (m. 1981) |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence | Waterford, Wisconsin |
| Occupation | Farmer, businessman |
Scott Gunderson was born in Burlington, Wisconsin, and raised in neighboring Waterford, Wisconsin. He graduated from Waterford Union High School in 1974.[2] His father died in 1977.[3] In 1980, he became the owner of a liquor and hunting supply store known as "Gundy's Liquor and Sport", in Wind Lake, Wisconsin, which he operated until 2007.[4] During that time, he also became the operator of the Gunderson family farm in the town of Norway, and became active in many farm-related civic organizations, such as the Racine County Farm Bureau and the Racine County Fair.[2]
In April 1991, Gunderson first entered public office when he was elected to the board of supervisors of the town of Waterford.[5] He was re-elected in 1993.
In 1994, first-term state representative Kathleen A. Krosnicki announced she would not run for re-election.[6] Gunderson became one of four candidates seeking the Republican Party nomination to succeed her that fall. He prevailed with 40% of the vote in the Republican primary, likely assisted by increased turnout for a school referendum in Waterford at the same election.[7] In the general election, he defeated Democrat Thomas Schilling with 62% of the vote.[8] He went on to win re-election eight times.
In his time in the Assembly, he was a member of the committee on natural resources for all 16 years of his legislative career, serving as chairman during the 2005–2006 term. He was also chairman of the committee on urban and local affairs from 1997 through 2005. He was also active on the Wisconsin Coastal Management Council and the Wisconsin State Fair Park board.[9]
In 1998, a vacancy occurred in the 28th Senate district when incumbent Lynn Adelman was appointed a United States district judge. Gunderson entered the special election to succeed him in the Wisconsin Senate, but he was defeated in the Republican primary by state representative Mary Lazich.[10]
Ethics accusation
Gunderson has sponsored bills to lower the hunting age in Wisconsin to eight and to allow people to carry concealed handguns. In 2005, he refused to turn over a draft of concealed carry legislation on the grounds that draft bills are confidential, even though he had previously shown the draft to lobbyists for the National Rifle Association of America to solicit their feedback.[11] The state Ethics Board ruled in 2006 that Gunderson as owner of Gundy's Sport didn't have enough of a financial interest in gun-related proposals to have a conflict. He said his store would not directly benefit from the legislation, and had sold fewer than 50 guns in the prior year.[4]
Residency dispute
In 2006, Gunderson's Democratic opponent filed a charge that Gunderson did not live in the 83rd Assembly District, which he was elected to represent, and that he was violating election laws by voting in the village of Waterford. Gunderson acknowledged that his farm and farmhouse is in the 63rd District; but points out that he has an apartment in Waterford, which has been his official address and voting residence for some time. When his Norway farm home was redistricted out of the 83rd district, he had told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he would be moving to a new home inside the district.[12] The Racine County District Attorney refused to file charges,[13] and Gunderson was re-elected despite the challenge.
After winning re-election in 2010, Gunderson resigned his seat before the start of the 2011 legislative term, accepting a job as an executive assistant in the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.[14] He worked at the Department of Natural Resources for several years before resigning. Since then, he has been active locally, running Waterford's Fourth of July and Memorial Day parades, and the Racine County Fair.[1]
Scott Gunderson was one of four children born to Dean Gunderson and his wife Julie. Dean Gunderson was a truck driver and died at the relatively young age of 40.[3] The Gunderson family farm in the town of Norway had been established by Scott Gunderson's great-great grandfather, pioneer Gouty Gunderson, who immigrated to the United States from Norway in the 1830s. By the time of his death in 1905, Gouty Gunderson was one of the more prosperous farmers in the county, having expanded his farm to 220 acres.[15]
Scott Gunderson married Lisa A. Nemath in 1981. They have three adult children. The Gundersons are members of the Lutheran church.[2]
Wisconsin Assembly (1994–2010)
| Year | Election | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Primary[8] | Sep. 13 | Scott L. Gunderson | Republican | 1,804 | 40.04% | Ken Bohmann | Rep. | 1,347 | 29.90% | 4,505 | 457 |
| Michael R. Hanrahan | Rep. | 1,028 | 22.82% | |||||||||
| Robert A. Knackert | Rep. | 326 | 7.24% | |||||||||
| General[8] | Nov. 8 | Scott L. Gunderson | Republican | 11,538 | 62.32% | Thomas R. Schilling | Dem. | 6,977 | 37.68% | 18,515 | 4,561 | |
| 1996 | General[16] | Nov. 5 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 17,639 | 69.36% | Jeff Carew | Dem. | 7,793 | 30.64% | 25,432 | 9,846 |
| 1998 | General[10] | Nov. 3 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 16,828 | 100.0% | --unopposed-- | 16,828 | 16,828 | |||
| 2000 | General[17] | Nov. 7 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 24,329 | 76.08% | Daniel J. Drumel | Dem. | 7,633 | 23.87% | 31,979 | 16,696 |
| 2002 | General[18] | Nov. 5 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 16,932 | 99.73% | --unopposed-- | 16,978 | 16,886 | |||
| 2004 | General[19] | Nov. 2 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 25,972 | 99.68% | 26,055 | 25,889 | ||||
| 2006 | General[20] | Nov. 7 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 17,565 | 68.57% | Donald G. Herron | Dem. | 8,045 | 31.41% | 25,615 | 9,520 |
| 2008 | General[21] | Nov. 4 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 24,834 | 72.97% | Aaron Robertson | Dem. | 9,182 | 26.98% | 34,032 | 15,652 |
| 2010 | General[22] | Nov. 2 | Scott L. Gunderson (inc) | Republican | 22,192 | 78.69% | Aaron Robertson | Dem. | 6,003 | 21.28% | 28,203 | 16,189 |
Wisconsin Senate (1998)
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Republican Primary, February 17, 1998 | |||||
| Republican | Mary Lazich | 6,090 | 54.35% | ||
| Republican | Scott L. Gunderson | 5,115 | 45.65% | ||
| Plurality | 975 | 8.70% | |||
| Total votes | 11,205 | 100.0% | |||
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