Ted Chisholm, the 25-year-old son of the Milwaukee County DA, announces run for treasurer

Two weeks after one member of the Chisholm family announced he would not seek re-election, another family member threw his hat in the ring for political office.

Ted Chisholm, 25, son of Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, announced Thursday he is running for the partisan seat of Milwaukee County treasurer in 2024. He will run as a Democrat.

Chisholm addressed head-on questions about his age and whether he’s riding the coattails of his father’s career, the county’s top prosecutor since 2007.

“That’s always gonna be a question and it was a question back when I was first appointed to serve in leadership at the county back in 2019 … I’ve proven that someone’s age, someone’s name — those are not the things that that define the quality of someone’s public service,” he told the Journal Sentinel.

He will run against incumbent Democratic Treasurer David Cullen, who was paid roughly $91,500 in 2022. Cullen could not immediately be reached for comment.

“I’m never about attacking anybody who’s dedicated their life to public service,” Chisholm said of Cullen. “So, I’m running on my own merits and because I want to offer a new vision for how to lead the treasurer’s office forward.”

Chisholm currently works as a senior administrator for management, finance and strategy in the Milwaukee County Clerk of Circuit Court’s Office. In 2019, then-Milwaukee County Sheriff Earnell Lucas hired Chisholm for a $85,000-a-year chief of staff job. He also previously worked as campaign staff for Lucas.

Chisholm acknowledged he lacks a college degree after he dropped out of Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., after he was hired to work for the county.

The treasurer election will be Nov. 5 and a primary, if three or more candidates are running, would be held Aug. 13.

Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or at vswales@gannett.com. Follow her on X @Vanessa_Swales.