Glenn Grothman

Glenn Grothman
Born	Glenn Sholes Grothman 3 7, 1955
Birthplace	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Attorney, politician
Known for	U.S. Representative for Wisconsin's 6th congressional district
Education	University of Wisconsin–Madison (BBA, JD)
Website	[Official congressional website Official site]

Glenn Sholes Grothman (born July 3, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who has served as the U.S. Representative for Wisconsin's 6th congressional district since January 2015. A member of the Republican Party, Grothman was first elected to the U.S. House in 2014, succeeding longtime incumbent Tom Petri, who retired after 35 years in Congress. Before his election to federal office, Grothman built a lengthy career in Wisconsin state politics, serving in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1993 to 2005 and in the Wisconsin State Senate from 2005 to 2015. During his time in the state legislature, he held leadership roles including vice chair of the Assembly's Republican caucus and assistant majority leader of the state Senate. In Congress, Grothman has focused on issues including federal workforce oversight, tax policy, family policy, and government spending. He has introduced legislation on topics ranging from IRS accountability to social welfare reform, and has been known for his outspoken positions on a range of policy matters. His career in public service spans more than three decades of continuous elected office in Wisconsin.

Early Life

Glenn Sholes Grothman was born on July 3, 1955, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He grew up in the Milwaukee area and was raised in Wisconsin. Details about his parents and family background during his childhood years are not extensively documented in available public sources.

Grothman's upbringing in southeastern Wisconsin placed him in one of the state's most politically active regions, and he would go on to represent communities in the eastern part of the state for the entirety of his political career. His roots in the Milwaukee area informed his later political focus on issues affecting Wisconsin's suburban and rural communities.

Education

Grothman attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree. He subsequently remained at the university to pursue legal studies and earned his Juris Doctor (JD) degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School. His dual training in business and law provided the foundation for his career as an attorney and shaped his approach to legislative policy, particularly in areas related to taxation, regulation, and government spending.

Career

Wisconsin State Assembly (1993–2005)

Grothman began his career in elected office when he won a seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly, initially representing the 59th district. He first took office on December 16, 1993, succeeding Mary Panzer, who had moved to the state Senate. Grothman served the 59th district through January 5, 2003, at which point redistricting led him to represent the 58th district for the remainder of his Assembly tenure, from January 2003 to January 2005. In the 58th district, he succeeded Michael A. Lehman and was in turn succeeded by Patricia Strachota.

During his years in the Assembly, Grothman rose within the Republican caucus. He served as vice chair of the Assembly's Republican caucus from 1999 to 2004, a position that gave him influence over party strategy and legislative priorities within the chamber. In 2004, Grothman was noted for making an unusual political move by challenging an incumbent member of his own party in a state Senate primary, a step that drew media attention. The Badger Herald reported on Grothman's rare decision to mount a Republican primary challenge, a move that reflected his willingness to break from party convention when he disagreed with the direction of legislative leadership.

Wisconsin State Senate (2005–2015)

Grothman won election to the Wisconsin State Senate and began representing the 20th district on January 3, 2005. He succeeded Mary Panzer, whom he had defeated in the Republican primary. Grothman served in the state Senate for a decade, through January 3, 2015, when he departed to take his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was succeeded in the 20th Senate district by Duey Stroebel.

During his tenure in the state Senate, Grothman held a significant leadership role as assistant majority leader from 2011 to 2015, a period that coincided with major political upheaval in Wisconsin state politics under Governor Scott Walker.

Legislative Activity

Grothman was an active legislator in the state Senate, sponsoring and supporting numerous bills across a range of policy areas. His legislative record reflects a focus on fiscal conservatism, deregulation, public health policy, and social issues.

In 2011, Grothman introduced Senate Bill 19, which addressed mandatory disinfection of public water systems. The bill received support from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, which cited the importance of ensuring safe drinking water across the state's municipal systems.

Grothman was a supporter of concealed carry legislation in Wisconsin. He backed the bill that made Wisconsin the 49th state to allow some form of legal concealed carry of firearms, a measure that was signed into law in 2011. The passage of the concealed carry law was a significant policy achievement for Wisconsin Republicans and was supported by gun rights organizations.

Grothman also introduced Senate Bill 93 during the 2011 legislative session, which addressed additional regulatory matters in the state.

On food policy, Grothman was a vocal advocate for the legalization of raw milk sales in Wisconsin. He published a detailed column explaining his support for allowing consumers to purchase raw milk directly from farmers, arguing that consumers should have the freedom to make their own dietary choices and that Wisconsin's dairy farmers should be allowed to sell their products without excessive government restriction.

Grothman aligned with Governor Scott Walker on welfare reform, particularly regarding the FoodShare program (Wisconsin's implementation of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). In a press release, Grothman expressed his support for Walker's proposed reforms to FoodShare, which sought to impose additional requirements on program participants.

In 2012, Grothman sponsored Senate Bill 507, which dealt with factors contributing to child abuse and neglect. The bill attracted national media attention, with Yahoo! News reporting that the legislation identified certain family structures as contributing factors to child abuse, a framing that generated significant public debate.

Grothman was also involved in the debate over Wisconsin's repeal of the state's Equal Pay Enforcement Act in 2012. The Daily Beast reported on the repeal, noting Grothman's role in the legislative process and the broader national debate over equal pay policies that the Wisconsin action sparked.

Additionally, Grothman introduced Senate Bill 389 during the 2011–2012 legislative session.

2011 Protests and Recall Attempt

Grothman's tenure in the state Senate coincided with the major political upheaval surrounding Governor Walker's 2011 Act 10, which curtailed collective bargaining rights for most public employees in Wisconsin. The legislation provoked massive protests at the Wisconsin State Capitol and led to recall efforts against several Republican state senators. Grothman was a supporter of the legislation and became a target of recall efforts himself. However, the recall campaign against Grothman ultimately fell short of gathering the required number of signatures, and he was not forced into a recall election. The Ozaukee Press reported on the aggressive recall effort and its failure to meet the signature threshold.

During the Capitol protests, Grothman drew media attention for entering the crowd of protesters, an incident that was covered by local media.

Other Positions

Grothman attracted attention for his public comments on U.S. foreign policy regarding Uganda's anti-homosexuality legislation. The Wisconsin State Journal reported that Grothman criticized U.S. moves against Uganda's stringent anti-homosexuality laws, a position that drew both support and criticism.

U.S. House of Representatives (2015–present)

Election

In 2014, Grothman ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in Wisconsin's 6th congressional district following the retirement announcement of longtime Republican incumbent Tom Petri, who had served in Congress since 1979. Grothman won the Republican primary and the general election, taking office on January 3, 2015.

Legislative Priorities

In Congress, Grothman has focused on a range of policy issues, including federal workforce management, tax reform, government oversight, and family policy. He has served on several House committees and has been an active sponsor and co-sponsor of legislation.

Grothman has been a vocal advocate for reducing the size of the federal workforce. In an October 2025 interview with Wisconsin Public Radio, he argued that regardless of debates over government shutdowns, the federal workforce was too large and advocated for laying off between 100,000 and 200,000 federal employees.

In September 2025, Grothman introduced the Fair and Accountable IRS Reviews Act, a bill designed to strengthen oversight of Internal Revenue Service penalties and protect taxpayers from what he characterized as excessive enforcement actions.

Grothman has pursued bipartisan legislative efforts as well. In July 2025, he and Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell of Michigan reintroduced Dillon's Law, a bipartisan bill. The reintroduction reflected a collaborative effort across party lines on the issue.

On social welfare policy, Grothman has continued the focus he established in the state legislature. In 2025, he reintroduced the Safeguarding Benefits for Americans Act, legislation designed to strengthen social welfare programs by ensuring benefits are directed to eligible recipients.

Family Policy and Marriage Penalties

Grothman has been an outspoken advocate for reforming what he characterizes as marriage penalties in the tax code and government benefit programs. In 2025 and 2026, he participated in a panel hosted by the Republican Study Committee and the Values Action Team titled "Marriage and the Government: How Public Policy Affects Families," where he called for ending marriage penalties and strengthening families through policy reform.

He also voiced support for a coalition of family and faith-based organizations that urged House leadership to pursue marriage penalty reforms as part of broader legislative packages.

Foreign Policy Statements

In December 2025, Grothman released a statement condemning antisemitic attacks at Bondi Beach in Australia, joining other members of Congress in speaking out against the incidents.

Personal Life

Glenn Grothman is unmarried and has no children. He has been described as a dedicated public servant who has spent the vast majority of his adult life in elected office, holding continuous positions in Wisconsin government since 1993. He resides in the area he represents in eastern Wisconsin. Grothman is known for his accessibility to constituents and his frequent public appearances at community events throughout his district.

During the 2011 protests at the Wisconsin Capitol over Act 10, Grothman's decision to walk into the crowd of demonstrators drew significant media attention and became one of the more memorable moments of the protests, contributing to his public profile beyond his district.

His political positions have at times generated controversy, drawing both strong support from conservative constituents and criticism from progressive groups and media commentators. A 2026 statement from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin referenced Grothman in the context of intraparty Republican debates, noting that he was "more reasonable" than some other members of his party on certain issues—an unusual characterization given the typically adversarial relationship between the state's two major parties.

Legacy

Glenn Grothman's career represents one of the longer continuous tenures in Wisconsin elected office in modern state history, spanning from his first election to the state Assembly in 1993 through his ongoing service in the U.S. House of Representatives. His legislative record in the Wisconsin State Senate during the politically turbulent Walker era placed him at the center of some of the most consequential policy debates in the state's recent history, including Act 10, concealed carry legislation, and welfare reform.

In Congress, Grothman has continued to advance a legislative agenda centered on fiscal conservatism, government reform, and family policy. His willingness to engage in bipartisan efforts, as evidenced by his collaboration with Democratic colleagues on legislation such as Dillon's Law, has at times distinguished him from more strictly partisan members of the House Republican caucus.

His advocacy for marriage penalty reform and his focus on government accountability through bills like the Fair and Accountable IRS Reviews Act and the Safeguarding Benefits for Americans Act reflect his ongoing focus on the policy themes that have defined his career since his earliest days in the Wisconsin State Assembly.

Grothman's career has also been marked by a willingness to court controversy, whether through his positions on social issues, his public comments on foreign policy matters, or his direct engagement with political opponents during the 2011 Capitol protests. This combination of legislative productivity and a willingness to stake out provocative positions has made him one of the more recognizable political figures in Wisconsin.