Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Now more than ever staying connected is vital in our fight rooted in personal impact and local communities. The economical, constitutional, and human challenges we currently face are not mere political talking points. They are shaping the here and now of the moment we are living in, which calls for moral courage and collective action. Our landscape is being carved as you read this, in our communities, in our schools, at our dinner tables, and on our farms and factory floors across Northeast Wisconsin.
A moment like this calls for strong communication and clarity, so let me introduce myself: I’m Julie Hancock and I’m honored to be serving as your 8th Congressional District ("8th CD") Chair across Northeast Wisconsin. Stepping into this role from my tenure as 1st Vice Chair, I will continue to dedicate myself to working alongside you and everyone in our great district to build and expand organizing efforts, voter education efforts, and fundraising initiatives so here, in Northeast Wisconsin, Democrats can mount competitive campaigns and build sustainable infrastructures throughout our districts. With your help, we will build a stronger district rooted in unity, organizational power, and impassioned messaging.
We will keep building on our successes and momentum across Northeast Wisconsin.
- In 2024, every county under the 8th Congressional District (Brown, Calumet, Door, Kewaunee, Marinette, Menominee, Outagamie, Oconto, Shawano, Waupaca) moved between 7-15 point toward blue. This is a result of the critical organizing work across the district.
- In 2025, the 8th CD is under new leadership, ready to continue the work of the previous leadership, tackle the every day issues that matter to Wisconsinites, and win even more races in 2026.
- In 2026, we have almost every seat for Congress and the State Assembly and Senate under the 8th CD with a candidate gearing up to run and fight for the people of Northeast Wisconsin. Announcements to come.
This year, we must come together—across parties, communities, and backgrounds—to defend the rights guaranteed to us under the Constitution. We are building this communication avenue to streamline what our community members need to know as soon as possible so people like you can make a difference when it matters most: here and now.
Fundamental freedoms like due process, equal protection under the law, and the right to be treated with dignity are being treated as optional, as sacrifice at the altar of authoritarian ambition. This is not who we are.
Farms, small businesses, and manufacturers—the backbone of our region—are struggling. Families are facing higher costs on everyday good because of misguided tariffs; those same people in power are targeting the very programs that have long served as lifelines for working families and older Americans.
People already face devastation as they try to access affordable healthcare and now new laws enacted to slash or privatize Medicaid and Social Security will destroy folks in our communities. Healthcare is not a luxury. It is a human right, and we will fight to protect it for everyone, from our youngest children to our oldest veterans.
As an immigration lawyer, in this moment I see first-hand the horrendous and inhumane ways that detention and deportation is being weaponized to hunt down our hardworking, taxpaying neighbors and rip them from their homes without due process in a violation of their rights, and a deeply personal attack on our shared values and prosperity here in Wisconsin. These are working families, children, caregivers, and our community members who contribute to our local tapestry every day.
This is no case of going after the “worst of the worst” as the administration claims. We call this what it is: inhumane, un-American, and an outrageous misuse of our military and tax dollars.
In Wisconsin, we believe in fairness and freedom. That means fighting for affordable childcare, demanding living wages and accessible healthcare, protecting our environment from dangerous PFAS contamination, defending reproductive freedom, and finding ways to make our lives more affordable, not less—especially in rural areas too often left behind.
It also means defending democracy itself. The right to vote, to have our voices heard in free and fair elections, the right to protest, the right of the press to hold our leaders accountable—these are the foundations of our republic. And we are the ones who must protect them.
We have a choice to make. Between cynicism and hope. Between fear and unity. And we have a lot of work to do to make the system one that works for everyone.
As Chair of the 8th Congressional Democrats, and with the Executive Board, County Parties, State Party, and especially all of you patriots who work so hard to fight every day for our country, I will guide our district towards a future built by all of us, together. There is more that unites us than divides us. Let’s come together, fight for what matters, and build a Northeast Wisconsin where everyone—no matter who they are—has the freedom to thrive.
In solidarity,
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Julie Hancock
Chair, 8th Congressional District Democrats of Wisconsin
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