Shae Sortwell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theWisconsin State Assembly from the2nd district | |
| Assumed office January 7, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | André Jacque |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1985-08-03)August 3, 1985 (age 40) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6 |
| Residence | Gibson, Wisconsin |
| Education | University of Wisconsin–Green Bay (BA) United States Army CBRN School (Cert.) |
| Website | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army U.S. Army Reserve |
| Years of service | 2009–2018 |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | Chemical Corps |
Shae A. Sortwell (born August 3, 1985) is anAmerican truck driver andRepublican politician fromGreen Bay, Wisconsin. He is a member of theWisconsin State Assembly, representing the2nd Assembly district since 2019. He previously served on the Green Bay city council and the town board ofGibson, Wisconsin.
Shae Sortwell was born inSaratoga Springs, New York, in 1985.[1] At age 15, he moved with his family to the town ofGibson, Wisconsin. After graduating from high school, he went on to attend theUniversity of Wisconsin-Green Bay, graduating in 2006 with degrees in public administration and political science.[2] While in college, Sortwell was a member of student government and founded a pro-life student organization.[3]
After earning his bachelor's degree, he enlisted in theUnited States Army Reserve and served nine years with theChemical Corps, rising to the rank ofsergeant before his honorable discharge in 2018.[4] During those years, he also became active in local politics, winning election to the Green Bay city council, and then going to work as a legislative aide to state representativeChad Weininger.[3]
In 2014, Sortwell made his first bid for state office, running as an independent candidate forWisconsin State Assembly in the90th Assembly district. Sortwell came in a distant third, behind RepublicanEric Wimberger and Democratic incumbentEric Genrich, who won the election.[5][6]
In 2016, Sortwell pushed an online petition asking Green Bay mayorJim Schmitt to resign over criminal campaign finance violations.[7] By that time, however, Sortwell had moved back to the town of Gibson. He was elected to the board of supervisors of Gibson in 2017.[4]
In 2018, after incumbentAndre Jacque announced he would not run for reelection, Sortwell declared his candidacy for Assembly in the2nd Assembly district.[8] During the campaign, he was endorsed by state senatorAlan Lasee and Manitowoc County ExecutiveBob Ziegelbauer.[9] He defeated Dean Raasch in an August primary for the Republican nomination and won the November election over Democrat Mark Grams, garnering 55 percent of the vote.[10][11]
After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election andDonald Trump refused to concede, Sortwell raisedconcerns of fraud in the election and urged Congress to delay certification of the election results.[12]
In 2020, Sortwell and another Republican legislator,Paul Tittl, erected a Christmas tree in the capitol rotunda, which had been previously prohibited by governor Tony Evers due to the ongoingCOVID-19 pandemic.[13] The two legislators were joined by representativesDave Murphy andChuck Wichgers in decorating the tree.[13] Sortwell and Tittl applied for an application to display the tree in the capitol rotunda, but were denied due to a longstanding rule against having such displays on the ground floor, because the capitol was closed to the public due to the pandemic, and because they had not followed the proper procedure for applying for a permit.[14] This stood in contrast with a fellow Republican legislator,Amy Loudenbeck, who was granted permission to place a Christmas tree on the capitol rotunda's first floor.[15]
In 2021 Sortwell garnered controversy due to comparisons he made between Central Wisconsin Children's Museum, based out ofStevens Point, Wisconsin, andNazi Germany due to a requirement from the museum for unvaccinated people to wear masks, with Sortwell saying "The Gestapo wants to see your papers, please".[16] Due to his comments, the museum received harassment from all across the country. Stevens Point residents asked Sortwell to apologize for his statement, but he stood by his statement about the museum.[17][18]
In 2025 Sortwell was assigned as vice chair to the Government Oversight Accountability and Transparency (GOAT) Committee, which was modeled off of theDepartment of Government Efficiency (DOGE).[19] Using the committee, he sent out requests to numerous cities asking for information regardingDiversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Sortwell was criticized by Democratic members of the committee for making these information requests without consulting other members of the committee and due to the lack of a task for the committee to undertake.[19]
During Sortwell's childhood, his father was asubmariner in theUnited States Navy.[3]
In 2007, Sortwell married Krista Van Haren.[20] They have six children together.[3]
A controversy emerged in 2021 around an alleged incident from 2013 that Sortwell had abused one of his children after the child was found to have bruises. The investigation conducted by "four police officers, two social workers, a child forensic officer—a trained agent who interviews child victims of physical and sexual abuse—a child advocacy staff member and a nurse practitioner," resulted in law enforcement referring the incident to the district attorney as per department guidelines which almost always will make a referral and let the DA's office decide on the case.[21] However, Deputy District Attorney Dana J. Johnson decided not to pursue charges, citing "the defense of the parent using reasonable force to discipline the child." Sortwell told officers he and his wife disciplined their child with an object when he was being "defiant" because they are commanded to in the Bible.[22]
| Year | Election | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | General[5] | Nov. 4 | Eric Genrich (inc) | Democratic | 7,953 | 54.94% | Eric Wimberger | Rep. | 5,342 | 36.90% | 14,477 | 2,611 |
| Shae Sortwell | Ind. | 1,164 | 8.04% | |||||||||
| Year | Election | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Primary[23] | Aug. 14 | Shae Sortwell | Republican | 2,708 | 54.88% | Dean Raasch | Rep. | 2,221 | 45.01% | 4,934 | 487 |
| General[24] | Nov. 6 | Shae Sortwell | Republican | 15,014 | 54.82% | Mark Grams | Dem. | 10,118 | 36.94% | 27,389 | 4,896 | |
| Jeff Dahlke | Ind. | 1,494 | 5.45% | |||||||||
| Kevin A. Bauer | Lib. | 745 | 2.72% | |||||||||
| 2020 | General[25] | Nov. 3 | Shae Sortwell (inc) | Republican | 22,244 | 63.11% | Mark Kiley | Dem. | 12,970 | 36.80% | 35,248 | 9,274 |
| 2022 | General[26] | Nov. 8 | Shae Sortwell (inc) | Republican | 16,112 | 59.18% | Renee Gasch | Dem. | 11,093 | 40.74% | 27,226 | 5,019 |
| 2024 | General[27] | Nov. 5 | Shae Sortwell (inc) | Republican | 23,198 | 63.22% | Alicia Saunders | Dem. | 13,474 | 36.72% | 36,693 | 9,724 |
I stand by my statement, that you have a right to your medical privacy. No government, no business has a right to your medical information and I stand by it and yes it's exactly what the gestapo did...
| Wisconsin State Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theWisconsin State Assemblyfrom the2nd district January 7, 2019 – present | Incumbent |