Former state Sens. Tim Cullen, who crossed party lines to serve in a Republican administration, and George Petak, whose change of heart paved the way for a new baseball stadium in Milwaukee, have died.
Cullen, a former Democratic majority leader from Janesville, passed away yesterday at a Madison hospital after dealing with a heart condition, his family said. He was 80. Petak, a Racine Republican, died this morning, his family said. He was 75.
Cullen’s first stint in the state Senate ran from 1975-87 and included five years as the majority leader. He left the chamber to serve two years as Health and Social Services secretary under GOP Gov. Tommy Thompson from 1987-88 before leaving to work for Blue Cross Blue Shield. He served as an executive with the company and its successors before returning to the state Senate for a single term in 2011 when he teamed up with then-Sen. Dale Schultz, a Richland Center Republican, to advocate for new maps. Cullen wrote three books, most recently one on redistricting: “Wisconsin Gerrymandering: The Fight for Permanent Fair Maps and Why It Matters.”
“We were political partners, dear friends and then officially old friends,” said former Assembly Speaker Tom Loftus, a legislative colleague. “Tim liked to say he was, ‘just an Irish politician.’ Remember Tim on St. Patrick’s Day. He would like that.”
Petak was the first Wisconsin state legislator to be removed from office in a recall election after he switched his vote on a five-county sales tax to fund a stadium for the Milwaukee Brewers. Petak was first elected to the state Senate in 1990 and won reelection four years later. In 1995, he twice voted against a proposed sales tax for the stadium. But he switched his vote the third time the bill was brought to the floor, leading to the recall effort a year later. His loss to Dem Kimberly Plache in that election flipped control of the state Senate.
Following his loss, Petak was appointed deputy director of the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority. He later served as a government consultant and lobbyist. Some later credited Petak’s vote for helping keep the Brewers in Wisconsin.
George Petak’s son, Brian Petak, posted on Facebook this morning of his father’s passing.
“My Dad certainly fought the good fight and finished his race well,” Brian Petak wrote. “What a legacy he has left for all of us. A man of God with uncompromising integrity, a heart to serve, and a godly influence on so many.”
See the WisPolitics press release page for reaction.
