BLANCHARDVILLE — Kriss Marion, a rural entrepreneur and Lafayette County Supervisor, launched her democratic candidacy for the 51st Assembly District today with a video announcement from her farm in rural Blanchardville. 

Now in her third term as a county supervisor, Marion recently made history by being elected 2nd Vice Chair of the Lafayette County Board of Supervisors for 2020-22. She is the county’s first woman officer, and her duties include presiding over the powerful Executive, Rules and Legislative Committee.

This winter, Marion won an Openness in Government Award from the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council for her efforts to block Lafayette County from passing a resolution restricting county elected officials and employees from discussing results of the Southwest Wisconsin Groundwater and Geology study of private well contamination. The resolution also threatened to prosecute members of the press who didn’t print county press releases about SWIGG verbatim, but was dropped after drawing widespread national criticism for violating First  Amendment freedoms of speech.  

Marion is a small business and family farm advocate — helping challenge the state ban on selling home baked goods. She and two other women farmers — all part of SW Wisconsin’s “Soil Sisters” farm advocacy group — went to court in 2016 and won home bakers the right to sell goods face-to-face. 

Incumbent Todd Novak (R-Dodgeville) recently announced his re-election bid for candidacy. 

Kriss Marion and her husband, Shannon, raise sheep and run a farmstay bed and breakfast in rural Blanchardville. They have four children who graduated from Pecatonica Area School District and a grandchild. Learn more at www.krissforwisconsin.com.