Around Town

REFERENDUM APPROVED: Voters in the School District of Iola-Scandinavia approved a major operational funding referendum Tuesday. The ballot measure passed narrowly with 1,311 yes votes to 1,210 no votes. The district can now exceed state revenue limits by $1.2 million this year and $1.5 million annually for three subsequent years.

FINANCIAL AID NIGHT: The Iola-Scandinavia High School will host a Senior Financial Aid Night tonight, Nov. 4, at 5:30 p.m. The event will be held in the school auditorium for seniors and their guardians. An expert will help attendees complete the FAFSA immediately after the presentation.

Job Opportunities

Around the County

WAUPACA — Incumbent Republican Sheriff Timothy Wilz won reelection Tuesday, defeating independent challenger Justin Malueg. Unofficial results show Wilz garnered 13,284 votes to Malueg’s 9,369 votes to secure another four-year term leading the county’s law enforcement agency. (Source: WBAY)

COUNTY — Waupaca County officials have balanced the preliminary 2027 budget, closing a projected $3.2 million deficit. Finance Director Heidi Dombrowski reported that targeted cuts, software adjustments, and an internal $906,075 general fund drawdown resolved the shortfall ahead of the final Nov. 10 vote. (Source: WLUK)

COUNTY TAX RATE — Local property owners will see a decrease in the county portion of their tax bills due to a 9.73 percent increase in equalized property values. The county tax rate will fall from $4.21 to $3.87 per $1,000 of assessed value. (Source: WFRV)

WAUPACA — Republican Congressman Tony Wied secured reelection in Wisconsin’s 8th Congressional District on Tuesday. Wied defeated Democratic challenger Rick Crosson, winning 177,258 votes to Crosson’s 151,471, according to unofficial regional election returns. (Source: WSAW)

CLINTONVILLE — The Clintonville Common Council has authorized the municipal water and electric utility to file a simplified rate case application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. The request seeks a 3 percent water rate increase to address local utility infrastructure costs. (Source: WGBA)

CLINTONVILLE — School district officials reported a significant drop in student enrollment following the state’s annual third Friday count. Total full-time student attendance in the Clintonville School District declined from 1,126 last year to 1,059 for the current academic term. (Source: WAOW)

CLINTONVILLE — The Clintonville School Board is evaluating local classroom usage of Brisk artificial intelligence tools. Board member Christopher Hoffmann raised concerns about the administration’s acquisition of the software components before fully consulting the elected education board. (Source: WLUK)

WEYAUWEGA — Local school district voters rejected an operational referendum on Tuesday’s ballot, according to unofficial election returns from Waupaca County. The failed measure leaves the school district to face upcoming budgetary adjustments without the requested property tax funding increase. (Source: WFRV)

Around the Area

JENSEN COMMUNITY CENTER has announced its Community Spirit Award recipients. They are Barb Lepak, Faith Sopa and T & T Automotive. Lepak was named Person of the Year, Sopa was named Junior Person of the Year, and T & T Automotive was named Business of the Year.

Around the State

Here are the top overnight news stories from across Wisconsin:

DEMOCRAT DAVID Crowley defeated Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany in the Wisconsin gubernatorial race Tuesday, becoming the state’s first Black governor. Crowley succeeds retiring Gov. Tony Evers, securing a historic third consecutive term for Wisconsin Democrats. (Source: WISN 12)

WISCONSIN DEMOCRATS won majorities in both the state Assembly and state Senate on Tuesday. The sweeping legislative victory marks the first time Democrats have controlled both houses of the Wisconsin Legislature since 2011, following redistricting under newly drawn legislative maps. (Source: FOX6)

DEMOCRAT REBECCA Cooke defeated incumbent Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden Tuesday night in Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District. The high-stakes, competitive rematch from 2024 helps cement a national shift in the balance of power in the U.S. House of Representatives. (Source: WEAU 13)

DEMOCRAT MITCHELL Berman unseated incumbent Republican Rep. Bryan Steil on Tuesday in Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District general election. Steil delivered a concession speech late Tuesday night, flipping a competitive southeast Wisconsin seat that Republicans had held for over 30 years. (Source: TMJ4)

INCUMBENT DEMOCRATIC Attorney General Josh Kaul won reelection Tuesday night over Republican challenger Eric Toney. Kaul secured a third term following a tightly contested statewide race that saw heavy voter turnout across Wisconsin. (Source: WMTV)

GREEN BAY voters approved a four-year, $158 million operational referendum for the Green Bay Area Public School District on Tuesday night. District officials stated the funding is vital to maintain classroom staffing, support special education, and cover everyday operations amidst declining enrollment and state funding gaps. (Source: FOX11)

MILWAUKEE POLICE are investigating a pursuit that ended in a serious crash early Wednesday morning on the city’s north side. A 74-year-old individual suffered severe injuries after a fleeing vehicle crashed, trapping occupants inside before emergency crews responded. (Source: TMJ4)

WEST BEND High School will be closed Wednesday after a second-floor ceiling fire broke out overnight. Fire crews responded to the school building late Tuesday to extinguish the blaze, and administrators canceled classes to evaluate damage and air quality. (Source: CBS58)

THE MILWAUKEE Public Schools district is working to recover $450,000 lost in a sophisticated bank impersonation scam. District officials confirmed Tuesday afternoon that scammers tricked staff into transferring the funds, prompting an immediate investigation by local and federal law enforcement. (Source: FOX6)

UNIVERSITY OF Wisconsin-Madison officials issued a campus-wide alert Tuesday after eight people reported being drugged at an off-campus fraternity house on Langdon Street. The university and Madison police are actively investigating the reported incidents, which occurred late last week. (Source: Channel 3000)

MADISON POLICE announced Tuesday that a woman faces a homicide charge following a fatal domestic shooting on the city’s north side. She turned herself in early Thursday morning after apartment surveillance footage captured her shooting a 31-year-old man during an argument. (Source: WMTV)

Today in History

1842 — The FUTURE PRESIDENT Abraham Lincoln married Mary Todd in a ceremony at her sister’s home in Springfield, Illinois. The couple remained together until Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, enduring the American Civil War and the deaths of three of their four sons.

1922 — British ARCHAEOLOGIST HOWARD Carter discovered the entrance to King Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, Egypt. The nearly intact burial chamber provided historians with unprecedented artifacts and insights into ancient Egyptian civilization and wealth.

1948 — WISCONSIN CAR MANUFACTURER Nash Motors introduced the completely redesigned Airflyte aerodynamic model for the 1949 model year. Built in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the vehicle featured unique enclosed front fenders and a unibody construction that influenced automotive design styling.

1952 — The NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY was established through a secret memorandum issued by President Harry S. Truman. Headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, the defense agency handled highly classified cryptanalysis and global communications intelligence during the Cold War.

1974 — The FIRST VOLKSWAGEN GOLF rolled off the assembly line at the automaker’s plant in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, introducing Americans to the Rabbit moniker. The front-wheel-drive hatchback served as a fuel-efficient successor to the aging Beetle model.

1978 — The DISCO ANTHEM “MacArthur Park” by Donna Summer reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The singer’s electronic-infused rendition of the Jimmy Webb composition held the top spot for three consecutive weeks, cementing her title as the Queen of Disco.

1979 — The IRAN HOSTAGE CRISIS began when militant Iranian students seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. The attackers took 63 American diplomats and citizens hostage, triggering a 444-day diplomatic standoff that profoundly fractured relations between Washington and Tehran.

1995 — Israeli PRIME MINISTER YITZHAK Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing Jewish extremist following a peace rally in Tel Aviv. Rabin, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his role in the Oslo Accords, died at Ichilov Hospital, altering the Middle East peace process.

2008 — Illinois SENATOR BARACK Obama defeated Republican Senator John McCain to become the 44th president of the United States. Obama’s victory made him the first African American elected to the nation’s highest office in U.S. history.

2016 — OFFICIALS AT UW-Madison officially opened the new Hamel Music Center, groundbreaking a state-of-the-art facility for the Mead Witter School of Music. The campus venue enhanced performance spaces for student musicians in Madison, Wisconsin.