A Wausau-based Hmong leader and politician announced he will be running for the 85th Assembly District this fall — and if elected would make him the first Hmong state representative in Wisconsin history.
Yee Leng Xiong announced Saturday his candidacy for the 85th District, a seat currently occupied by Pat Snyder.
Xiong is the current executive director of the Hmong American Center, and serves on the Marathon County Board and the D.C. Everest School District. He’s also previously served on the Weston Village Board.
Xiong already received endorsements from numerous current and former area officials, including former mayor Katie Rosenberg and former Marathon County Administrator Brad Karger, and several current Assembly and Senate members.
Xiong presumably would face Rep. Pat Snyder in the fall race, though Snyder was drawn out of the district with the most recent redistricting and into the 87th. Snyder says he is looking for an apartment in the district so he can run in the 85th.
The new 85th Assembly District only includes Wausau and Weston and part of Schofield. According to the Wisconsin State Journal, the new 85th District is one of the top ten most competitive districts under the new maps, with only a slight majority Republican constituency. The potential race even caught the attention of the New York Times, which wrote about the potential matchup between Xiong and Snyder.
