Bob Donovan

Robert G. "Bob" Donovan (born May 4, 1956) is an American Republican politician from Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing Wisconsin's 61st Assembly district since 2025; he previously represented the 84th Assembly district during the 2023–2024 term. He previously served 20 years on the Milwaukee Common Council and was an unsuccessful candidate for mayor of Milwaukee in 2016 and 2022.

Early life and career Bob Donovan was born and raised in the Jackson Park neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and graduated from Saint Thomas More High School. Donovan comes from a Catholic family, and originally planned to become a priest after high school. He entered Saint Francis de Sales Seminary but left after a year. He then attended the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee for two years, intending to become a teacher, but also left without completing his degree. During his college years, he had worked as a laborer during the summers at Milwaukee Solvay Coke & Gas Co., a coal processing plant. After leaving UWM, he decided to focus on this work and became a supervisor and later plant foreman. A few months after the election, however, Czarnezki won a special election for Wisconsin Senate, and a new special election was called in the 17th Assembly district. Ultimately, Biskupic agreed to drop the charges after Donovan paid a fee to the city. The deal also prohibited Donovan from any involvement in federally-funded groups for the next two years, and required him to cut all ties with the Milwaukee Alliance. The organization ceased to exist less than a year later. Because of his relatively unique conservative politics in the city government, Donovan's office became a hub for conservatives in the city seeking constituent services—even those outside of his aldermanic district. Donovan has frequently been at-odds with his mostly Democratic colleagues in the Milwaukee Common Council, and was described as having a "large ego" and "pandering". He subsequently moved to the neighboring suburban city of Greenfield, Wisconsin.

Mayoral races Donovan launched his first bid for mayor of Milwaukee in 2015, challenging three-term incumbent mayor Tom Barrett in the 2016 election. Wisconsin's mayoral races are nonpartisan, but Milwaukee Democrats sought to clearly tie Donovan to the Republican establishment. They described Donovan as having "Scott Walker's ideas and Donald Trump's erratic behavior," and pointed out Donovan's frequent collaboration with Republican state legislators. Donovan's past run-ins with the law were again brought up in the 2016 campaign. Donovan ran on an anti-crime platform with the endorsement of Milwaukee's police and firefighters' unions. Donovan was also a long-time opponent of the planned Milwaukee Streetcar. Barrett easily prevailed with 70% of the vote in the Spring general election, in line with his previous two mayoral campaigns.

Five years later, in 2021, Barrett resigned to accept an appointment as U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg. A special mayoral election was set to be held concurrent with the 2022 Spring election. Donovan again chose to enter the race, despite Milwaukee no longer being his primary residence. He stood out in a crowded primary field as the only conservative candidate, and again ran on an anti-crime platform, calling for more police and tougher penalties for criminals. The final vote was also nearly identical to his previous run, and interim mayor Cavalier Johnson became Milwaukee's first black mayor, receiving 71% of the vote.

Wisconsin Legislature Around the time of the Spring 2022 election, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued its decision in the case of Billie Johnson v. Wisconsin Elections Commission, setting new district maps for the Wisconsin Legislature. Six-term incumbent state representative Mike Kuglitsch was drawn out of the 84th Assembly district, creating an open seat. Within two weeks, Donovan declared his candidacy in the new 84th Assembly district. He faced two opponents in the Republican primary, but easily won with 72% of the vote. He faced Democrat Lu Ann Bird in the general election, a former Whitnall School District board member from Hales Corners, Wisconsin. The 84th district race was one of the closest elections in the state in 2022, and Donovan ultimately prevailed by a margin of 526 votes.

Following the 2024 redistricting, Donovan was drawn out of the 84th Assembly district and into the new 7th Assembly district. Donovan subsequently announced he would relocate to run instead in the redrawn 61st Assembly district. The 61st district, comprising the villages of Greendale and Hales Corners, most of the city of Greenfield, and a small part of southwest Milwaukee, was projected to be one of the most competitive Assembly districts under the new maps.

Personal life and family Bob Donovan married his wife Kathy in 1985. They met while he was working as a security officer at Southridge mall—she was working at a clothing store. They had two children together and Kathy brought three children from her previous marriage, all are now grown.

Milwaukee Mayor (2022)

Wisconsin Assembly, 84th district (2022)