Altoona school board member running for Assembly
Jan. 31—ALTOONA — Hillarie Roth of Altoona sees serving in the Wisconsin Assembly as the next logical step in a career of public service.
Roth, who serves on the Altoona school board and Altoona Police and Fire Commission and as a chief inspector for the city's polling places, announced her Republican candidacy Monday for the 68th Assembly District. The seat is being vacated by Rep. Jesse James, R-Altoona, who last month announced plans to run in the 23rd Senate District.
Roth's entry into the race sets up a GOP primary contest with Fall Creek nutritionist Karen Hurd.
The partisan primary is scheduled for Aug. 9 to decide who will advance to the Nov. 8 general election. No Democrats have yet announced plans to enter the race.
In discussing her commitment to public service, Roth said she and her family live by the following motto: "I can't change the world, but I can work really hard to make my corner of it a better place."
As a school board member since May 2019, Roth said, "I have a proven track record of working hard for our kids and keeping the decisions of raising children in the hands of their parents. Parents know their children better than anyone else and have the tools and knowledge to best decide how to meet the needs of their child."
Her campaign website states that she is proud the Altoona School District was one of the only districts in Eau Claire County that remained open for in-person learning the entire 2019-20 school year and never shifted to a virtual platform, as many districts did in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.
She is also a board member for the Wisconsin Association for Talented and Gifted and has been an active advocate for advanced learners.
"All students, no matter what their ability levels and capability levels are, have unique needs," Roth said. "As educators, we need to serve those unique needs."
If that doesn't happen, some students may drop out of school or become disengaged, exacerbating the workforce shortage already plaguing the state, said Roth, who called herself a school choice advocate and has had her children try public schools, parochial schools and home schooling.
Roth, who worked as a registered nurse before electing to be a stay-at-home mom to raise her children and then returning to the workforce as co-host of a morning show on contemporary Christian radio station WWIB for five years, said she considers herself a well-rounded candidate with a wide range of experience and familiarity with the political process through testifying before legislative committees and working with the offices of Rep. Warren Petryk, R-town of Washington, and Sen. Kathy Bernier, R-Lake Hallie, on legislation to improve opportunities for advanced learners.
As an RN and school board member, Roth, 43, said she understands the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the health care system, student learning and daily lives.
"Personally, I do feel like we are going to get past COVID-19," she said. "We're going to have to get past it not by eradicating it, because that's just not possible ... We're not going to get rid of that COVID family of viruses. We need to learn how to live and function and we need the medical freedom to make our own choices for our own unique medical needs."
In other words, Roth said, she opposes vaccine mandates but said it's up to private businesses to determine if they want to require customers to wear masks.
Roth also noted that she opposes abortion rights, saying, "I absolutely believe in the rights of the unborn."
If elected, Roth pledged to work hard on behalf of the top priorities of 68th District residents as identified in a recent survey by James: improve infrastructure, enhance workforce development, strengthen education and exercise fiscal responsibility with tax dollars.
"I'm here to serve the people in my district," she said. "I can bring my background and expertise to that, but ultimately their high priorities are my high priorities."
Roth is married and has two daughters.
