LCVVF Names #WISEN Candidate Leah Vukmir to 2018 Dirty Dozen

MADISON, Wisconsin, Oct. 17 -- The League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund issued the following news release:

Today, LCV Victory Fund named Wisconsin Senate candidate Leah Vukmir to its annual Dirty Dozen list. The Dirty Dozen has targeted the most anti-environmental candidates over the last two decades. On the campaign trail, Vukmir has refused to stand up to Donald Trump's attacks on the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. And her record as a state legislator has earned Vukmir an abysmal 20 percent lifetime score from the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters.

"Leah Vukmir has shown a total disregard for Wisconsin's public health and environment," said Pete Maysmith, LCV Victory Fund Senior Vice President for Campaigns. "Instead, she has tried to make it easier for big polluters and developers to destroy Wisconsin's clean air, clean water and public health. The people of Wisconsin deserve a champion representing them in Washington, and that is not Leah Vukmir."

"As a state senator, Leah Vukmir has prioritized polluters over people and public health while voting to strip away clean water and air protections," said Ryan Billingham of the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters. "She has refused to stand up to Donald Trump's attacks on our state and she's tried to destroy the state we love by implementing Scott Walker's disastrous anti-conservation agenda. Now, she wants to do the same in the U.S. Senate."

Vukmir has repeatedly sided with polluters and developers, rather than protecting Wisconsin's lakes and rivers. Among her many votes in favor of big polluters, she voted to prevent counties from protecting their communities from pollution, including their clean air and clean water. She also voted to weaken and to undermine shoreland zoning protections, voted to remove water quality safeguards from shoreland zoning laws, and voted to cut public input during the permitting process for construction and dredging near waterways.

Vukmir also voted against fighting against invasive species that threaten Wisconsin's lakes. These types of votes harm the Great Lakes economy and the livelihood of fisherman. According to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, sport fishing contributes more than $4 billion to the Great Lakes economy, and commercial fishing contributes more than $1 billion.

LCV Action Fund has endorsed Senator Tammy Baldwin for re-election, noting that she has been a champion for "protecting Wisconsin's air, water, and lands while growing our clean energy economy."