Campaign Trail Winds Through the Northwoods
State Senator Kelda Roys made a stop in Rhinelander this week, bringing her Democratic gubernatorial campaign message straight to Northwoods voters. The Monday afternoon meet-and-greet drew local Democrats eager to hear how candidates plan to address the kitchen-table issues hitting home up north.
With no incumbent in the race and seven Democrats vying for the nomination, candidates are fanning out across Wisconsin early. Roys chose Rhinelander deliberately — this region’s voters have proven pivotal in recent elections, and the concerns she’s hearing here echo across small towns statewide.
The August 11 primary is shaping up to be competitive, and events like this give candidates a chance to connect face-to-face with voters who often feel overlooked between election cycles.
Wages and Costs Top the List of Local Concerns
Ask folks around here what keeps them up at night, and you’ll hear a familiar refrain: everything costs more, but paychecks haven’t kept pace. Roys says that’s exactly what she’s hearing as she travels the state.
“I keep hearing about the need to raise wages and lower costs right now, because people are really struggling to make ends meet,” she told attendees. “They are working harder than ever, and yet they’re not able to get ahead.”
It’s a message that resonates in a region where the median household income sits around $52,000 — well below the state average. Between gas prices for those long drives to work, heating bills through brutal winters, and grocery costs that seem to climb every week, families are feeling the squeeze.
“They are working harder than ever, and yet they’re not able to get ahead.” — State Senator Kelda Roys
The Northwoods economy runs on tourism, manufacturing, and forestry — industries that weathered significant challenges over the past few years. When hospitality jobs lag and paper mills tighten their belts, the ripple effects touch everyone.
A Different Approach to Health Care Access
Beyond wages, Roys is pitching a health care plan she says sets her apart from other Democrats in the field. Up here, where the nearest specialist might be an hour’s drive and insurance premiums eat up a hefty chunk of household budgets, health care isn’t abstract policy — it’s personal.
“The cost of healthcare just has to come down,” Roys noted at the event. “We have both an affordability problem and an access problem.”
Her proposal? Open up the state employee health insurance plan to let anyone buy in. It’s the same coverage she gets as a state senator, and she argues making it available to small business owners, farmers, and independent workers could bring costs down through a larger risk pool.
For Northwoods residents — where 25% of the population is over 65 and health care costs average $12,500 per household annually — access and affordability aren’t talking points. They’re daily realities. Longer drives to medical facilities and fewer in-network options make the challenges even steeper.
What Northwoods Voters Bring to the Table
Why does a candidate from Madison make the trek to Rhinelander? Because this region matters more than some might think.
Oneida County flipped Democratic in the last gubernatorial election, delivering 52.5% of the vote when margins were tight statewide. That’s the kind of swing that candidates notice. The Northwoods isn’t reliably red or blue anymore — it’s competitive territory where campaigns are won or lost.
Local Democrats see events like this as a chance to energize the base and attract independents who care more about substance than party labels. Here’s what tends to move voters in this region:
- Economic opportunity that keeps young people from leaving for cities
- Affordable health care and prescription drug costs for aging populations
- Support for small businesses that form the backbone of tourism and service industries
- Infrastructure investments in rural broadband and road maintenance
- Protection of natural resources that draw visitors and sustain outdoor recreation
Candidates who understand these priorities — and can speak to them without sounding like they’re reading from a script — tend to connect better with Northwoods voters.
The Road to August
With three months until the primary, expect to see more candidates making the rounds through towns like Rhinelander, Minocqua, and Eagle River. Open primaries on both sides mean voters have choices, and those choices get clearer when candidates show up in person.
Roys faces formidable competition from other Democrats, including Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and others with statewide name recognition. But races aren’t won on name recognition alone — especially not up here, where voters tend to value authenticity and follow-through over polished talking points.
The issues Roys highlighted Monday — affordability, wages, health care — align closely with what polls show mattering most to Wisconsin voters this cycle. Whether her specific proposals gain traction remains to be seen, but she’s betting that bringing her message directly to communities like Rhinelander will make the difference.
As primary season heats up, Northwoods voters will have plenty of opportunities to size up the candidates and decide who’s best positioned to deliver on the promises being made. Ya know what? That’s exactly how it should work.
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