Wisconsin
Wisconsin Rapids election results: Wisconsin State Senate and Assembly
Wisconsin Rapids-area voters on Tuesday elected several familiar faces to the state Senate and state Assembly.
Wisconsin Rapids-area voters on Tuesday elected several familiar faces to the state Senate and state Assembly. One race − Wisconsin’s 71st Assembly District − remained too close to call early Wednesday morning.
Here’s a closer look at those races.
Senate District 24
Patrick Testin defeated Collin McNamara for the District 24 seat in the Wisconsin State Senate. Testin has served two terms in the seat since 2017.
Testin, 36, is a Stevens Point resident who earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and was a Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development Fellow in 2018.
In a press release sent at 11:46 p.m. Tuesday, Testin shared he was honored the people of the 24th district voted for Testin to continue representing them.
“Tonight’s victory is a triumph of record over rhetoric, and I’m thrilled to be able to continue getting real results for the people of central and western Wisconsin,” he said in the announcement.
Here are the unofficial election night results as provided by the Associated Press. As of 12:27 a.m. Wednesday, 85.93% of estimated votes were in:
- Patrick Testin (i): 51,750 (58.7%)
- Collin McNamara: 36,402 (41.3%)
Assembly District 71
Democrat Vinnie Miresse was leading Republican Bob Pahmeier for the District 71 seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly as of 1 a.m. Wednesday, but the race remained too close to call. Democrat Katrina Shankland served six terms in the seat since 2013 before filing for noncandidacy for the seat while she pursued candidacy for the 3rd Congressional District seat.
Here are the results as of 1 a.m. Wednesday, and we will update when they become official.
- Miresse: 18,631 (53.2%)
- Pahmeier: 16,417 (46.8%)
Assembly District 72
Scott Krug defeated Suzanne Campbell for the District 72 seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Krug has served seven terms in the seat since 2011.
Krug, 48, is a Rome resident who is a real estate agent with NextHome Partners in Wisconsin Rapids, serves as Adams County supervisor for District 18 and is a member of the Tri Lakes Management District in Rome. Krug earned an associate degree in criminal justice from Mid-State Technical College and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Here are the unofficial election night results as provided by the Associated Press. As of midnight, 77.22% of estimated votes were in:
- Scott Krug (i): 18,772 (65.3%)
- Suzanne Campbell: 9,958 (34.7%)
Assembly District 86
John Spiros defeated John Small for the District 86 seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Spiros has served six terms in the seat since 2013.
Spiros, 62, is a Marshfield resident who served six years in the U.S. Air Force before earning an associate degree in criminal justice and serving as a police officer. Spiros is currently the vice president of safety and claims at Roehl Transportation.
Here are the unofficial election night results as provided by the Associated Press. As of midnight, 87.09% of estimated votes were in:
- John Spiros (i): 23,329 (67%)
- John Small: 11,511 (33%)
Erik Pfantz covers local government and education in central Wisconsin for USA TODAY NETWORK – Wisconsin and values his background as a rural Wisconsinite. Contact him at epfantz@gannett.com.
Wisconsin
Stepmom from hell accused of starving 35-pound teen daughter enters plea — could spend the rest of her life behind bars
The Wisconsin stepmother from hell accused of abusing her 35-pound 14-year-old daughter by depriving her of food and water has entered a no-contest plea in the twisted case.
Melissa Goodman, 52, now faces up to 46 years in prison if she’s handed the maximum sentence for charges of chronic neglect causing great bodily harm, chronic neglect causing emotional damage and false imprisonment.
She’s set to be sentenced on July 1.
Goodman, along with husband Walter Goodman, has been accused of starving her autistic stepdaughter.
Goodman’s daughter Savanna Goodman and her girlfriend Kayla Stemler were also charged over the alleged abuse, People reported.
The family is accused of locking the teen in a bedroom without a mattress, restricting her to only her room for years and depriving her of food and water, according to Wisconsin prosecutors.
The mobile home they lived in became a house of horrors for the teenager, who was mistaken for a 6-year-old when she was found by cops in August 2025 and rushed to the hospital.
Walter Goodman, the victim’s father, called 911 to report that his daughter was lethargic and ill.
Responding officers found her weighing just 35 pounds; she was hospitalized with multi-organ dysfunction, including respiratory failure and pancreatitis.

From 2020 until August 2025, the victim, whose name is not disclosed because she is a minor, was allegedly isolated in a trailer on Hattie Lane, in Oneida, Wisconsin.
Extended family members were told she was away on vacation or with other relatives to explain her absence.
Wisconsin
‘Song Sung Blue’ subject Claire Sardina playing Wisconsin State Fair
When “Song Sung Blue” – the biopic about Milwaukee Neil Diamond tribute act Lightning & Thunder – had a premiere at the Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee last December, star Hugh Jackman gave Claire Sardina (played in the film by Kate Hudson) an engraved bench honoring Lighting & Thunder to be installed at Wisconsin State Fair Park.
In August, Sardina will get to have a seat on that bench – and sing again on a State Fair stage.
Sardina will perform with tribute act So Good: The Neil Diamond Experience Aug. 9 at the Bank Five Nine Amphitheater, the largest stage at the fair featuring free concerts with admission.
For Sardina, it will be a return to a place central to Lighting & Thunder. The band performed in the Milwaukee area from 1989 until Mike Sardina, aka Lightning, passed away in 2006. The State Fair was one of their favorite places to play, and the couple got married there in 1994.
The couple’s wild story – from a performance at a Pearl Jam Summerfest concert to major health issues – was the subject of the documentary “Song Sung Blue” that inspired the biopic, and earned Hudson an Oscar nomination for portraying Claire Sardina.
Fair officials May 8 revealed the full headliner lineup for the stage, which includes:
- Aug. 6: Sixteen Candles
- Aug. 7 and 8: Here Come The Mummies
- Aug. 10 and 11: Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone
- Aug. 12: Hairbangers Ball
- Aug. 13: Too Hype Crew
- Aug. 14: The Gufs
- Aug. 15: Let’s Sing Taylor – An Unofficial Live Tribute Show
- Aug. 16: Pat McCurdy
All Bank Five Nine Amphitheater concerts are included with fair admission.
The lineup is also nearly complete for the Bank Five Nine Main Stage, with just a show on Aug. 11 to be announced.
Tickets are on sale for these shows at wistatefair.com and include same-day fair admission:
- Aug. 6: Hairball
- Aug. 7: Nelly
- Aug. 8: Bailey Zimmerman with Chandler Walters
- Aug. 9: Wynonna Judd and Melissa Etheridge
- Aug. 10: For King + Country with Rachel Lampa
- Aug. 12: John Mulaney
- Aug. 13: The All-American Rejects with Joyce Manor
- Aug. 14: Lindsey Stirling with PVRIS
- Aug. 15: AJR with Em Beihold
- Aug. 16: The Beach Boys
Wisconsin
Wisconsin universities and schools impacted by Canvas data breach
WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW/GRAY NEWS) – A ransomware group has claimed to have breached the learning management system Canvas, possibly exposing the personal information of students, teachers and staff across the country.
According to a statement from the Universities of Wisconsin website, they were notified of a nationwide security breach experienced by Instructure, the provider of Canvas. Universities of Wisconsin schools use the cloud-based management system.
UW-Stevens Point tells NewsChannel 7 they have not confirmed UWSP was involved in the breach, but did send communication that Canvas was down and students should not perform any asked actions if prompted, as it may not be legitimate while Canvas is down.
Instructure, the parent company of Canvas, posted on May 1 about a cybersecurity incident that had been reported and was under investigation.
The next day, Chief Information Security Officer Steve Proud wrote that the information involved in the attack included names, student ID numbers, messages between users and email addresses.
“At this time, we have found no evidence that passwords, dates of birth, government identifiers, or financial information were involved. If that changes, we will notify any impacted institutions,” he wrote.
The Wausau School District sent a letter to parents Wednesday regarding the cybersecurity incident. They said there is no evidence that passwords, single-sign-on credentials, financial information or social security numbers were impacted. They stressed that type of information is not stored in Canvas.
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