Political leaders from both sides of the aisle are offering praise for a former Wisconsin Governor, following news of his death over the weekend.
The family of Patrick Lucey says the former governor and U.S. Ambassador died Saturday at the Milwaukee Catholic Home, following a brief illness. Lucey was 96.
Lucey, a Democrat, was elected to the state’s first four year term for governor in 1970. He was re-elected in 1974, although he left midway through that term to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico under then-President Jimmy Carter. He also ran for vice president of the United States in 1980 as an independent.
State Senator Fred Risser (D-Madison), one of the few lawmakers still serving in the Legislature who was in office when Lucey led the state, said the former governor “will be remembered as one who was instrumental in advocating a progressive Democratic Party in Wisconsin.”
State Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate called Lucey “a true Wisconsin statesmen, the kind that’s practically become extinct in this era of divisiveness and political unrest.”
Governor Scott Walker recalled seeing Lucey last summer during the 40th anniversary of Kikkoman in Fontana. Walker offered thoughts and prayers for Lucey’s family, saying he “was a dedicated public servant who loved Wisconsin.”
Funeral arrangements are still pending.