AFT-Wisconsin joins the WIsconsin State AFL-CIO and more than a dozen unions in supporting Shankland to defeat Rep. Derrick Van Orden.

STEVENS POINT, WI – Today, the American Federation of Teachers–Wisconsin (AFT-Wisconsin) announced that they have endorsed Katrina Shankland for Congress in Western and Central Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District. The union represents thousands of public employees across the state, including K-12, higher ed, the tech college system, and other state workers.

“Katrina has had our backs too many times to count. She is a true champion of public education,” said Rebecca Stephens, SPARC Local 6506 Executive Board member. “She has consistently listened to the concerns of faculty, staff, and students throughout her time as our Representative in the 71st District. She has used that knowledge to help advocate for us at a local level, such as fighting against Point Forward’s proposed program cuts, and at a statewide level, from supporting the Fund the Freeze campaign to introducing the Reaching Higher for Higher Education bill package. AFT-Wisconsin is excited to endorse her for Congress.”

“As the daughter of two public school teachers here in Central Wisconsin, I couldn't be prouder to flip this seat alongside AFT-Wisconsin,” said Shankland. “Together, we’re building a winning coalition to defeat Van Orden and fight for students, educators, and staff across the 3rd District. It's high time we give teachers a raise, fairly fund our schools, and reduce our over-reliance on property taxes.”

“Rep. Shankland has tirelessly worked with our local higher education unions across the state to elevate our concerns with the politicized attacks on the UW system for over a decade,” said Jon Shelton, a professor at UW-Green Bay and Vice President of Higher Education for AFT-Wisconsin. “She understands the necessity of fully funding public education at every level, and we cannot wait to see her represent our members and our students in Congress.”

AFT-Wisconsin adds to a growing list of elected officials and organizations endorsing Shankland, including Congressman Mark Pocan (WI-02), the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO, more than a dozen labor unions, and more than three dozen state and local elected officials. Head-to-head polling shows Shankland is the only Democratic candidate who beats Van Orden in the general election this November, 48-46%.

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Katrina Shankland is a state representative in the Wisconsin State Assembly. In the Legislature, Katrina has passed 225 bipartisan laws, including increased access to affordable rural healthcare, help for farmers, expanded protections for first responders, and stronger clean water laws. Katrina is running for Congress to bring some common sense to the Capitol, fight against extremism, and deliver results for the hard-working people of Wisconsin. For more, go to katrinashanklandforcongress.com.