Plache will serve on the Racine Unified School Board

Update: Fourth-place-finisher Stella Young tells the Insider News she wants the School Board seat.

Original: Kim Plache lost the election she was trying to win and won the election she wasn't trying in at all.

The former state senator finished third in the Racine mayoral race behind John Dickert and Bob Turner, leaving her out of the May 5 special election to elect the city's new mayor.

But Plache also finished third Tuesday in the race for Racine Unified School Board. That was good enough to earn her a three-year term on the board along with incumbents Don Nielsen and Gretchen Warner.

Plache said Tuesday she'd accept the School Board seat.

"I'm honored to have been chosen and I will serve," she said.

It's something of a change of heart for Plache, who had declared her candidacy for School Board in January only to switch her focus in February to the mayor's race after Gary Becker was arrested and resigned.

Plache said when she launched her mayoral campaign that she tried to take her name off the School Board ballot, but couldn't.

"If I didn't have to die to get my name off the ballot, I'd take it off," Plache said on Feb. 18. "I'm completely focused on running for mayor."

But now that the votes have shaken out, Plache said she would accept her elected seat on the School Board. She replaces former School Board President Tony Baumgardt, who did not run for re-election.

Stephanie Hayden, director of communications for Unified, said Plache is entitled to the seat. Once she put her name on the ballot, Hayden said, it became the voters' choice.

"If she wants the seat, it's hers," Hayden said.

Plache received 7,747 votes for School Board and outpaced fourth-place finisher Stella Young by about 700 votes.

Plache said Wednesday she's always been committed to public service and supporting public education. Her daughter is a sixth-grader in Racine Unified, which Plache said gives her extra motivation to join the board.

She described the support she received for School Board as "heart warming," if unexpected.

Plache did not campaign for the School Board and publicly declared she was only running for mayor. But Unified voters jumped at her name recognition and experience as a state senator and representative and elected her anyway.

Plache makes it official: She's running for mayor

Kim Plache made it official today: She's running for mayor.

The former Democratic state senator sent out a press release Wednesday evening announcing her plans to enter the special election. Starting Feb. 27, she's taking an unpaid leave of absence from her job at the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority to campaign.

Plache also intends to drop out of the School Board race. She's not legally allowed take her name off the ballot, but she won't campaign for School Board and will resign if she finishes in the top three.

"If I didn't have to die to get my name off the ballot, I'd take it off," Plache said. "I'm completely focused on running for mayor."

Plache is also addressing her residency situation. She and her family now live in Mount Pleasant, but are in the process of selling their home and buying a new home in the city. Plache is now renting an apartment on Eighth Street near the City Hall Annex. Her 10-year-old daughter will live with her full time, and her husband will take care of their home until it sells.

State law requires Plache to establish residency in the city before taking office. Living in the apartment is one way to establish residency.

Plache said she'll work on her campaign at night until her unpaid leave of absence kicks in. She's hired a campaign manager, is making contact with community leaders and working on fundraising.

Here's her complete press release:

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009, RACINE, WI – Kim Plache announced today that she will be a candidate for mayor in the upcoming special election. As Mayor, Plache would focus on:

(1) Retaining and creating family supporting jobs,
(2) Holding down taxes by controlling spending and working with people in Madison and Washington to bring more money to Racine,
(3) Reaching out to diverse groups of people to help create and push for effective and new solutions to long term city problems; especially crime, poverty and student performance in our schools.

"We must do everything in our power to retain and create jobs, cut costs in city government, bring in new money and to implement and expand effective solutions to our long term problems," Plache said.

Plache continued, "One thing we know for sure, if we keep doing everything in the same way that it has always been done, we will get the same result. That is not acceptable."

"Many good things that have been done in our City and we can’t afford to lose ground on the progress that has been made in reducing crime in some of our neighborhoods, in downtown revitalization, in improving the quality of life for our citizens through the enjoyment of our natural resources, but now is not the time to rest on our laurels."

"Now is the time to press forward with new leadership."

"We are right in the middle of one of the most dynamic regional economies in the world. If we are going to grow and protect jobs, we need a strong regional transportation system so we can take maximum advantage of that regional economy. If we want more jobs here, we must press forward with rebuilding I 94 and we must get KRM built."

"I am ready to lead this City. Everything I have done in my professional life has prepared me to be mayor of Racine," Plache said.

"My entire professional life has been devoted to working on behalf of Racine residents and area businesses. The work I did in the legislature and since that time on behalf of Racine improved our economy and quality of life."

While serving in the State Legislature, Plache wrote legislation to create the Center for Advanced Technology Innovation (CATI) to help drive innovation and job growth. Plache enabled the Healthcare Network by getting liability insurance for retired healthcare professionals who treat low income patients, and secured funding for the Root River Pathway. For the past five years as Senior Community Relations Officer at Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, Plache has increased home ownership and supported both business expansion and multi-family development for families and senior citizens in Racine.

Plache says the next mayor must be skilled at bringing diverse groups of people together to solve tough challenges.

"No person or group can solve these long term challenges alone. We must bring people together, roll up our sleeves and work together on creative solutions. We must look beyond the city’s borders and work with other municipalities and the state and federal government to strengthen our economy, reduce costs and protect our natural resources. I have a track record of doing just that."


Kim Plache, 48, was born and raised in the City of Racine. She attended Racine public schools and graduated from Horlick High School. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from UW-Parkside and a Masters in Public Administration from UW-Madison. Plache represented Racine in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1988 to 1996 and the State Senate from 1996 to 2002.

She currently serves on the UW-Parkside School of Business and Technology Advisory Board and the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation, Southeast Wisconsin Advisory Board.

Plache is married to Paul Hable and they have one daughter, Eve.

Kim Plache likely to enter mayor's race

Ken Lumpkin over at the Insider News spills the beans on an increasingly less secretive secret. Former State Sen. Kim Plache is a likely candidate for mayor.

She'll announce this week, probably Tuesday before the City Council calls the May 5 special election to replace Gary Becker on Wednesday. The primary election to narrow the field to two candidates is scheduled for April 7. Mayor Tom Friedel is serving in the office until the May election.

Plache, 48, was elected as a Democrat to the Assembly in 1988 and served until 1996, when she defeated former State Sen. George Petak in a recall election. Petak lost favor after casting the deciding vote for the Milwaukee Brewers' Miller Park stadium.

Plache was reelected to the Senate in 1998, but lost a close election to State Sen. Cathy Stepp, R-Yorkville, in 2002.

Since then, Plache has worked for the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, representing a five-county region including Racine County.

She announced late last year she was running for Racine Unified School Board. But she's shifted gears since Gary Becker's swift downfall and is now looking to become the city's first female chief executive. Two other women - Lesia Hill-Driver and Jody Harding - are also expected to run this spring.

One minor problem for Plache is her name is already on the ballot for school board race, and under state law it can only be removed by death. Plache said she won't serve both jobs.

A bigger problem is Plache doesn't live in the City of Racine. She and her family - Plache is married with an 11-year-old daughter - moved to Mount Pleasant a few years ago to have better access to their jobs. They live near Spring Street and South Emmertsen Road.

Plache intends to move into an apartment in the city and put her house up for sale. She also leans heavily on the fact that she served in elected office in Racine for 14 years, grew up in Racine, has lived her whole life in the Racine area and now works on Racine's behalf with WHEDA.

If she runs, Plache will be a formidable opponent in the growing list of candidates. First, she's carried large swathes of the city in previous elections, and likely still has name recognition with voters. Second, she's tied into people who can raise money. The mayoral election is only six weeks long, so candidates don't have much time to build up a campaign fund. Third, she's not Gary Becker. A lot of candidates can claim that, but Plache may be the biggest voice to claim "outsider" status to City Hall.

It helps that she reportedly has some big names lining up behind her campaign. It'll be interesting to see who local state legislators support. It's hardly a secret that State Rep. Bob Turner, D-Racine, wants to run for the mayor's office, setting up a potential showdown with Plache. Where does that leave Democratic State Rep. Cory Mason and State Sen. John Lehman?