Eric Genrich | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Green Bay, Wisconsin | |
| Assumed office April 15, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Schmitt |
| Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 90th district | |
| In office January 7, 2013 – January 7, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Karl Van Roy |
| Succeeded by | Staush Gruszynski |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 8, 1979 Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Emily Genrich |
| Residence | Green Bay, Wisconsin |
| Alma mater | University of Wisconsin–Madison (BA) University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (MLIS) |
| Website | Green Bay mayor website |
Eric Genrich (/ˈɡɛnrɪk/ GHEN-rik;[1] born October 8, 1979) is an American politician serving as the mayor of Green Bay, Wisconsin. Genrich was previously the Wisconsin State Assembly representative for Green Bay's 90th Assembly District, serving from 2013 until 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
Genrich first ran for office in the 2012 Wisconsin State Assembly elections, defeating businessman David VanderLeest with 60.2% of the vote.[2] He won re-election in 2014, defeating lawyer Eric Wimberger, and ran unopposed in the 2016 Assembly elections.
In March 2018, he announced his candidacy for Mayor of Green Bay in the 2019 election, in a bid to replace Jim Schmitt, who was not seeking another term as mayor.[3] Genrich and Brown County Supervisor Patrick Buckley advanced from a primary election, and Genrich defeated Buckley with 57.1% of the vote.[4]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Genrich and the City of Green Bay filed a federal lawsuit about a week before the April 7 elections to try and stop in-person voting. The lawsuit was dismissed because of a lack of jurisdiction,[5] and an order by Wisconsin governor Tony Evers to postpone the election also fell in court. Despite being offered help by the Wisconsin National Guard to help operate polling places, Genrich refused all assistance, citing a lack of training of the National Guard as poll workers,[6] closing 29 of the city's 31 polling places, only leaving Green Bay East High School and Green Bay West High School open.[7]
Born in Green Bay, Genrich graduated from Notre Dame Academy in 1998 and attended the University of Wisconsin, majoring in history and sociology and graduating in 2002.[8] Genrich served as a legislative aide to state senator Dave Hansen from 2002 to 2008. Genrich later received a master's in library science in 2010 from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, also serving as a representative for Congressman Steve Kagen until 2011. Prior to his election to the Assembly, Genrich was a librarian at the Brown County Library.[9]
