Dave Cieslewicz

Dave Cieslewicz
56th Mayor of Madison
In office
April 22, 2003 – April 19, 2011
Preceded by Susan Bauman
Succeeded by Paul Soglin
Personal details
Born (1959-02-17) February 17, 1959
West Allis, Wisconsin, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Dianne Cieslewicz
Alma mater University of Wisconsin, Madison

David J. Cieslewicz (/tʃɛsˈlɛvɪtʃ/;[1] Polish pronunciation: [t͡ɕɛɕˈlevit͡ʂ]; born February 17, 1959) is an American politician who served as mayor of Madison, Wisconsin from 2003 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Personal life and early career

Cieslewicz was born and raised in the Milwaukee suburb of West Allis, and came to Madison as a student at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He is of Polish descent, and grew up in what he identified as a Polish neighborhood as a child.[2] His wife is Dianne Cieslewicz, chief of staff to state Senator Fred Risser, and they reside in the Regent Street neighborhood on Madison's near-west side.

Prior to seeking the mayor's office, Cieslewicz served as executive director of "1000 Friends of Wisconsin," a land use advocacy organization that successfully lobbied for Wisconsin's Smart Growth planning law. He had additional political experience as a staffer in the Wisconsin State Legislature, as a lobbyist for the Nature Conservancy, and as an elected member of the Dane County Board of Supervisors. He also lost a state Assembly race in 1992 to Tammy Baldwin, now representing Wisconsin in the United States Senate.

Election

Cieslewicz was not a household name in Madison when he announced his candidacy for mayor. Although relatively unknown, the prominent support of popular Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk quickly made him a household name, if a mispronounced one (his campaign materials prominently featured phonetic pronunciations of his Polish last name).

Cieslewicz replaced Susan Bauman as mayor of Madison in 2003, after beating legendary activist and former mayor Paul Soglin in a close contest (results). He was easily re-elected to a second 4-year term in 2007, defeating Republican businessman Ray Allen (results). In 2011, Cieslewicz ran for a third term as mayor losing in a tight race to opponent, former Mayor Paul Soglin, whom he had defeated in 2003.

Accomplishments in office

Since his election, Cieslewicz has been an active executive and has implemented many of his campaign's promises.

Political activity

In the 2004 presidential election, Cieslewicz provided a key endorsement to Sen. John Edwards the week before the critical Wisconsin presidential primary. Edwards finished a surprisingly strong second, behind Sen. John Kerry.

Cieslewicz endorsed Edwards again in the 2008 campaign. When Edwards withdrew from the race, Cieslewicz endorsed Sen. Barack Obama. Obama went on to win the Wisconsin primary.

Criticism

Cieslewicz has his critics, primarily in the business community. Madison's regulatory climate has been called difficult for businesses, and critics see Cieslewicz as keeping with that tradition.[6] In response to those critics, Cieslewicz unveiled in December 2004 a vision for economic development with support from the Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Commission, Convention and Visitors Bureau, and other business organizations.[6]

Mr. Cieslewicz is a supporter of recreational marijuana use, but has not used marijuana "in recent years."[7][8]

Trivia

Cieslewicz has appeared in Episode 6 and Episode 8 of the hit web video series Chad Vader.

References

External links

Political offices
Preceded by
Susan Bauman		 Mayor of Madison
2003–2011 		Succeeded by
Paul Soglin
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