Attorney general hopeful Kathleen Falk addressed the College Democrats Monday night, saying she was confident in her race for the Democratic ticket and urging awareness of issues at stake.
Brian Shactman, chair of the College Democrats, said they are not endorsing Falk but want to give her an opportunity to speak about her upcoming campaign.
'We really want our members to hear from both candidates and hear what they have to say'why they are running,' Shactman said. 'Face-to-face interaction is the best way for our members to get to know the candidate the best they can.'
Falk said she had strong support from top state Democrats to win the race against Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager.
'Last spring and summer, Democratic leaders among the state came to me, citizens came to me, leaders in the Assembly,' Falk said. 'Legislators from all across the state in key leadership positions said, 'Falk, we are very worried that the incumbent in our party, Peg Lautenschlager, can't get re-elected.''
Falk also said she had amassed more money than any of her opponents on either end of the political spectrum and said it was a typical indicator of electoral success. She said all the other candidates had six months to raise funds, whereas she had seven weeks and was able to collect $260,000 dollars, compared to Lautenschalger's $160,000.
Falk said she takes pride in her history for standing up for citizens and taking on powerful special interest groups.
'She has good platforms. I like her environmental platforms, the pro-choice, I liked her ideas about jail rehabilitation over incarceration,' said Jillana Peterson, a UW-Madison freshman, who attended the spring kickoff meeting Monday.
Falk said she was confident she would make a better candidate for Attorney General than Lautenschlager.
'She is politically vulnerable, given her drunk-driving arrest and the use of the state car investigation, which is why democratic leaders across the state, including people like Mark Pocan here, who represents the campus, urged me to run,' Falk said.
