How ‘HOLY BALLS’ Could Signal A Sea Change in Northern Wisconsin Politics

“I’m going to talk like I’m doing an ASMR video and we’ll be fine.” 

Those words were muttered on a Tuesday night at a recent city council meeting in Wausau, Wis., a river town of about 40,000 people in the state’s northern region.

They came from an unlikely source: Katie Rosenberg, the city’s newly-elected millennial mayor. For reference, ASMR videos are the infamous online phenomena that feature people whispering to increase pleasure. 

Rosenberg, a 36-year-old Democrat, isn’t your typical mayor of a midsized Wisconsin municipality. She went viral for tweeting ‘HOLY BALLS’ after ousting a one-term incumbent by nearly five percentage points. She chooses to wear Air Jordan sneakers more often than heels. She puts Nicki Minaj on her playlists. She is openly liberal in a place that’s seen by many as not. 

“We’re seeing demographic shifts and a lot more quickly than we ever have,” Rosenberg said. “I would say you can also expect much more diversity to continue.” 

Rosenberg’s win is viewed as significant in a rural area part of Wisconsin, an important swing state. 

Rosenberg’s success could signal a sea change in voter trends ahead of the 2020 presidential election and the May 12 special election to replace former Rep. Sean Duffy, the conservative congressman and reality TV star with close ties to President Donald Trump. 

Rosenberg campaigned on re-evaluating economic development projects, expanding public transportation in Wausau’s metro area, and highlighting diverse voices. Wausau’s fiscal conservatives supported her pledge to reduce spending.

Rosenberg’s father, former Wausau City Council President and longtime Marathon County Board member Jim Rosenberg, credits a changing political landscape. 

“Marathon County is pretty conservative, but when you’re within the city limits then I think people who are more progressive have a better chance,” the elder Rosenberg said. “When you look around the state, she’s probably the northernmost progressive that got elected until you get to Ashland and Superior.”

Experts like political scientist Eric Giordano, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service, agree. He suggests that a shifting public response to Wisconsin’s Republican-controlled legislature led to Rosenberg’s win.

“Historically, in a two-party system, things swing back and forth,” Giordano said. “When one party gets a lot of control, they sometimes feel like they only have to legislate and govern the people who support them—it happens on both sides.”

During Wausau’s spring election season, Mandy Wright, a schoolteacher and former Wisconsin  Democratic state representative, emerged as one of Rosenberg’s most loyal surrogates. Wright, a close friend of Rosenberg, was elected as apart of a post-Act 10 wave and ultimately lost her seat in the legislature in 2014. She acknowledged that changing demographics and Rosenberg’s likability contributed to a victory in the April election. 

“She’s charismatic and fun and captured this voting block of pre-Obama people who grew up with him [Obama] in high school,” Wright said. “She has the social media connections to make a big deal about something and she’s really effective.”

Editor’s note: the author is a friend of Rosenberg’s family.