College Dems hosted a meeting Wednesday to hear from five candidates running for University of Wisconsin-Madison campus-area Common Council seats and made three endorsements for the upcoming April 1 general election.
Out of Matt Egerer and Will Ochowicz representing District 2, Eli Tsarovsky and Ald. Mike Verveer representing District 4 and Ald. MGR Govindarajan representing District 8, College Dems voted to endorse Ochowicz for District 2, Verveer for District 4 and Govindarajan for District 8.
Egerer spoke first at the meeting, advocating for a “safe, smart and affordable Madison.” Egerer has worked in politics since 2006 and drafted a bill that became the statewide ban on texting while driving. Egerer noted he was a vehement opponent of 2011 Wisconsin Act 10, which limits the collective bargaining and union power of most public sector employees in Wisconsin.
In his time at the Capitol, Egerer said he is also particularly proud of his work to install a “chair of honor” memorial, which honors Wisconsin prisoners of war and veterans missing in action.
Will Ochowicz, a former UW-Madison student and current software developer, spoke next. His campaign focused on “housing, transportation and climate change,” which he views in a “holistic approach,” with affordable housing being connected to reliable transportation in a way that also helps to reduce climate change.
In the past, Ochowicz said he has worked with District 2 Ald. Juliana Bennett and Govindarajan on “various housing issues,” which included helping to change a regulation that limited the number of unrelated people who could live together, which he claimed was used for racial discrimination and to keep students and low-income residents out of certain Madison neighborhoods.
Ochowicz is also a proponent of Madison’s Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT), which he said was a vital tool to increase affordable housing and combat climate change. However, he said BRT lacks funding, which he wants to support.
Govindarajan was the next to speak. Govindarajan said he is currently campaigning on three major issues: “housing, transportation and safety.”
"This time around, my main thing with housing is, try to make student housing as affordable and as accessible as possible.”
Govindarajan said he wants to build off the policy he supported the last two years, like the approval of roughly 5,300 new beds for housing in Madison and when he put forward almost $200,000 in funding toward pedestrian and bike lanes. He is also a staunch advocate for the city’s bus rapid transit system.
His final area of concern is safety. In Govindarajan’s talks with police, safety officials and students, he said he found key areas of concern around State Street which need to be addressed by “better lighting up the area and coming up with longer term plans to address safety issues.”
Tsarovsky, a graduate student at UW-Madison and District 4 candidate, agreed with Govindarajan’s analysis of State Street safety and was also looking to increase lighting in the area. Tsarovsky’s campaign focuses on the issues of housing affordability, environmental remediation and community safety.
Tsarovsky, whose district covers Lake Monona, wants to invest in Madison’s LakeWay project to clean it up and “make it a lake that people can really show pride in.”
“We need to give back to the people by continuing to invest into them,” he said.
His plans would continue investments in community projects like the Madison LakeWay and affordable housing in the city. .
Verveer, the longest running alder, positioned his reelection campaign on continuing the work he has been doing for the city of Madison since the 1990s. Speaking last, he said his career highlights include renovating library mall, the current parking ramp and bus depot construction on Lake Street, and establishing the ASM student bus pass during his time in student politics.
Verveer said he is running on affordable housing, public transportation and substance use in Madison. Recently, he spearheaded a rebuttal against the Madison Police Department for their raid of The Nitty Gritty on Jan. 30. He said most patrons there were simply eating food, not underage drinking, despite a police statement that claimed over 200 people under the age of 21 were drinking.
“As a veteran member of the Madison city council, I have a long record of progressive accomplishments of record in that regard… If I have the privilege of being re-elected on April 1, I will continue to do that,” Verveer said.
The general election is scheduled for April 1.
