Weber says that his time as an assistant Boy Scout master and seasonal supervisor at a Germantown plant nursery provides him with enough leadership and conflict resolution skills to effectively serve in the Wisconsin Legislature.

John Weber is not old enough to order himself a beer, yet raising the blood-alcohol limit for driving while intoxicated is among the Germantown Eagle Scout’s top items on his legislative agenda should he seize the 24th District State Assembly seat this September from fellow Republican and longtime incumbent Sue Jeskewitz.

The soft-spoken 19-year-old University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee sophomore will challenge Jeskewitz in the Sept. 12 election because he says there is too much corruption in government and too much government interference in people’s lives. For these reasons Weber has launched an entirely self-funded campaign for State Assembly with hopes to reduce what he calls “bureaucratic waste.”

So far Weber, a business major who recently transferred from UW-Madison, says he’s spent about $350 on his campaign. About 45,000 people reside in the predominately Republican 24th District, which spans all of Germantown, parts of Menomonee Falls and Richfield, and Milwaukee’s Ward 262.

“I’m running against Sue because people feel she’s not doing a very good job and I wanted to be an alternative to that since there was no alternative,” said Weber, who was born and raised in Germantown.

Although the two candidates agree on almost every key legislative issue — both are pro-big business, against legalized abortion, pro-concealed carry and against a statewide smoking ban in bars and restaurants — Weber feels he has more to offer District 24 than his opponent. Weber maintains that his youth affords him a perspective that looks further ahead into the future than Jeskewitz when considering important issues.

Jeskewitz and Weber have not met face to face, although the incumbent has attempted more than once to set up a meeting in person. Weber said he chooses not to meet with Jeskewitz in person during the race because he believes she will only try to persuade or intimidate him out of running.

The youngest person ever to hold a seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly was Michael Elconin, who at age of 19 won the 1972 race for then Milwaukee’s District 16.

According to the Legislative Reference Bureau, the youngest person ever to run was Neil Willenson, who in 1988 at age 17 managed to grab 28 percent of the votes as a Democrat in the heavily Republican district that included Mequon, Theinsville, Cedarburg and parts of Jackson.

Despite his lack of government experience, Weber says that his time as an assistant Boy Scout master and seasonal supervisor at a Germantown plant nursery provides him with enough leadership and conflict resolution skills to effectively serve in the Wisconsin Legislature. Weber added that being a member of UWM’s water ski team demonstrates his ability to work with others toward a common goal.

Both Jeskewitz and Weber are against making the emergency contraceptive pill Plan B available to women on UW System campuses. Commonly referred to as the “morning after pill,” Plan B was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration to be sold without a prescription to women 18 or older.

Weber said he is not against birth control; however he argues that if the original contraceptive failed, Plan B still should not be made available to women on campus.

Weber also said he would like to see the UW System not take race into account for admissions.

Aside from the more than 40-year age difference between Jeskewitz and Weber, what sets these two conservatives apart comes down to how far each is willing to go to reduce the level of government regulation in certain aspects of people’s lives.

“Government is at best a necessary evil,” said Weber, quoting a line he recalled being uttered in the movie “V for Vendetta.”

If elected, Weber plans to abolish the state seatbelt and child booster-seat laws and increase the speed limit by 10 miles per hour on state highways. Jeskewitz said she didn’t want to see seatbelts mandated, but after seeing statistics on how many lives were saved, she said she wouldn’t vote against it.

Weber says he is against drunk driving but argues vehemently against the government telling individuals when they’re too intoxicated to drive. Jeskewitz opposes raising the legally intoxicated blood alcohol level from 0.08 back up to 0.10.

The other major difference between the two candidates is in terms of campaign funding. Weber has remained adamant in his refusal to accept financial campaign contributions of any kind. He’s using this platform to try to prove to constituents that he cannot be bought and that he is fiscally conservative.

“They’re more interested in the issues than how pretty my fliers are versus Sue’s,” Weber said. He has been going door-to-door in District 24 to pass out his black-and-white photocopied fliers.

As of mid-August Jeskewitz, who for a decade has gone unchallenged for her seat in the State Assembly, said she has spent about $5,000 on her campaign.

“I think everyone who has an opponent has to take it seriously,” Jeskewitz said. “I would never take it lightly.”

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