Tony Earl
Earl inc. 1983
41stGovernor of Wisconsin
In office January 3, 1983 – January 5, 1987
Lieutenant	James Flynn
Preceded by	Lee Dreyfus
Succeeded by	Tommy Thompson
Secretary of theWisconsin Department of Natural Resources
In office December 15, 1975 – November 1, 1980
Governor	Patrick Lucey Martin J. Schreiber Lee S. Dreyfus
Preceded by	Lester P. Voigt
Succeeded by	Carroll Besadny
Secretary of theWisconsin Department of Administration
In office January 6, 1975 – December 15, 1975
Governor	Patrick Lucey
Preceded by	Joe Nusbaum
Succeeded by	Robert Dunn
Member of theWisconsin Assembly
In office January 1, 1973 – January 6, 1975
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Edward F. McClain
Constituency	85th district
In office October 14, 1969 – January 1, 1973
Preceded by	Dave Obey
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Constituency	Marathon 2nd district
Personal details
Born	Anthony Scully Earl (1936-04-12)April 12, 1936 St. Ignace,Michigan, U.S.
Died	February 23, 2023(2023-02-23) (aged 86) Madison,Wisconsin, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouses	Sheila Coyle ​ ​ (m. 1962; div. 2003)​ Jane Nemke ​ (m. 2011)​
Children	4
Education	Michigan State University (BA) University of Chicago (JD)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy

Anthony Scully Earl (April 12, 1936 – February 23, 2023) was an American lawyer andDemocratic politician who served as the 41stgovernor of Wisconsin from 1983 until 1987.^[1] Prior to his election as governor, he served as secretary of theWisconsin Department of Administration and secretary of theWisconsin Department of Natural Resources in the administration of GovernorPatrick Lucey. He also served three terms in theWisconsin State Assembly, representingMarathon County.

Earl was born inSt. Ignace, Michigan, the son of Ethlynne Julia (Scully) and Russell K. Earl.^[2] He graduated fromMichigan State University in 1958 and earned a J.D. from theUniversity of Chicago.^[3] After four years in theU.S. Navy, including two years as a legal officer, Earl made his way to Wisconsin in 1965.^[3] He was the district attorney ofMarathon County, Wisconsin from 1965 to 1966, and the city attorney ofWausau, Wisconsin from 1966 to 1969.^[3] That year, he was elected to theWisconsin State Assembly, filling the seat vacated byDavid Obey, who was elected a member of theUnited States House of Representatives.^[3]

In 1974, Earl left the Assembly to run forWisconsin Attorney General, but was defeated in the primary byBronson La Follette. Upon his defeat, then-Gov.Patrick Lucey named Earl secretary of the Department of Administration. Later, Earl became Secretary of theWisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) where his list of accomplishments include addressing the State's surface water pollution.^[4]

In 1982, Earl ran for governor whenLee S. Dreyfus unexpectedly declined to run for re-election, and soon the Wisconsin Democratic Party's hopes of reclaiming the governor's mansion became very real. As head of the state Department of Natural Resources, Earl was well-received as a staunch defender of the environment and a problem-solver. Earl used that reputation to defeat former Acting GovernorMartin J. Schreiber (1977–79) in the Democratic primary for governor. Earl went on to defeat theRepublican candidate,Terry Jodok Kohler, in a landslide victory.^[3]

However, Earl's tenure as governor was a challenge from the start. By the time he took office,Wisconsin was marred by abudget deficit of nearly $1 billion and a 12%unemployment rate.^[3] Earl signed legislation making the 5% sales tax permanent and also added a 10% surtax on state income tax which was later reduced. Once the state was fiscally sound, Earl passed initiatives improving the environment, education, and equal opportunity.^[3] Earl appointedDoris Hanson, the State's first female to hold the office of secretary of the Department of Administration andHoward Fuller, the first African-American appointed to a cabinet position heading the Department of Employee Relations. Due to disagreements overhealthcare reform, prison staffing, wage freezes, and other matters, Earl's relations with state labor Unions soured and made his tenure as governor all the more complicated.

After restoring the state following one of the worst economic predicaments in state history, Governor Earl was ousted after one term. State Assembly Minority LeaderTommy Thompson, aRepublican, staunchly opposed Earl's policies and was elected in 1986 to the first of four consecutive terms.^[3] Earl Bricker wrote an essay, "goodbye to Wisconsin Governor Tony Earl" bemoaning that Tommy Thompson had defeated Earl in the 1986 election, and that his "pro-family" stance may have given him wider demographic appeal than Earl's defense of gay and lesbian rights.

Earl served on the governing board of "Common Cause Wisconsin" from 1995 until 2005.^[5] a non-partisan, non-profit citizen's lobby affiliated with nationalCommon Cause. In 1990, Earl was elected to theCommon Cause National Governing Board and served until 1996. CC/WI promotescampaign finance reform, ethics and lobby reform, open meetings laws, voting rights, non-partisan redistricting, and other issues concerning the promotion and maintenance of accountable government. Earl also served on the board of the Chicago-basedJoyce Foundation for many years until 2013.^[6]

In July 2004, Earl was recognized at the 12th Annual Outreach Awards for his acknowledgment of the needs of the gay and lesbian community during his term in office; he received the organization's Political Courage Award. He served on the board of directors of the American Transmission Company which assumed ownership, operation, planning, maintenance, and monitoring of all the electrical transmission assets formerly owned by a number of Wisconsin utility companies, cooperatives, and municipal utilities. He was a pastpartner in one of the largest law firms (more than 400 lawyers) in Wisconsin,Quarles and Brady.^[7]The Peshtigo River State Forest in Marinette and Oconto counties has been renamed Governor Earl Peshtigo State Forest according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. September 25, 2019, as reported in the Appleton Post-Crescent on September 26, 2019.

Tony Earl married Sheila Rose Coyle ofChicago, in the summer of 1962. They met while he was a student at theUniversity of Chicago Law School.^[8] They had four daughters together, and were married for more than 30 years before separating in 1995. Their divorce was finalized in 2003.^[9] In 2011, Earl married Jane Nemke.^[10]

Earl had a stroke on February 19, 2023, and died four days later, on February 23, at theUW Health University Hospital, 48 days short of his 87th birthday.^[4]

• Biography from theNational Governors Association

• 1936 births
• 2023 deaths
• 20th-century American lawyers
• 20th-century American naval officers
• Candidates in the 1974 United States elections
• Candidates in the 1988 United States elections
• Democratic Party governors of Wisconsin
• Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly
• Michigan State University alumni
• Military personnel from Michigan
• People from St. Ignace, Michigan
• Wisconsin lawyers
• 20th-century members of the Wisconsin Legislature

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from February 2023