Sarah Godlewski speaks to supporters in Milwaukee

After traveling 1,100 miles across this state with David Crawley, and maybe stopping at a few too many quick trips, I could not be prouder to say we won. To begin, I just want to say a few thank yous. You know, I want to start by thanking my parents. They are two now retired special education teachers. They taught me what it means to be a public servant. I also want to thank my husband Max and my son Hartley, you know there were a lot of nights I wasn't around and a lot of weekends I wasn't there but they were there supporting me every step of the way and Hartley, wherever you are buddy, I promise our next family vacation will not be in a campaign bus. I want to thank my sisters for their constant support and belief in me and I also just want to thank my incredible campaign team because I would not be standing here if it wasn't for them. Wisconsin, thank you for believing in us. You all know we were up against a lot. There were three billionaires that put in $66 million trying to buy this governor's race. We sent a clear message that Wisconsin is not for sale. It's August. David and I have been crisscrossing this state from the Chippewa Valley to Milwaukee, from Door County to the Driftless. And we did a lot of traveling actually in a bus. And at times we even brought our kids with us. And so you can imagine we heard a lot of, are we there yet? So Hartley, Ava, and Autumn, I'm here to say that we are there. When we were traveling across the state, whether we were going to community centers or family meeting areas or even breweries here in Wisconsin, we were hearing always the same things from Wisconsinites. They were telling us that despite working as hard as ever, they still couldn't get ahead. We heard from families who were sharing that childcare was costing more than tuition at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A family of four, their monthly health care premium went from $700 a month to $2,700 a month. Care workers right here in Milwaukee, despite working 40 hours a week, we're still relying on food share to feed their families. In Wisconsin, you shouldn't have to spend your life trying to survive. You deserve opportunities to thrive here in our state. You know, I'm a... I'm a first generation Wisconsinite. I'm the daughter of two public school teachers and I was raised in a union family. I was a teamster who worked on the assembly line and my grandfather was a machinist. I believed in this promise. It wasn't a guarantee, but it was this promise that if you work hard, if you play by the rules, if you help your neighbor, you should have opportunities in our state to live a good life, to buy a home, to raise a family and to retire with dignity. And that's the promise that I grew up with and that is the promise that I believe in. And what makes me so frustrated right now is that we're seeing people do everything right, but they're still struggling to get ahead. And that's because the mega Republicans have sold out working families and they have who government is supposed to work for. Growing up, my parents would always say, when you see something wrong, you've got to stand up and do something about it. Well, Wisconsin, tonight we did something about it. David and I are going to govern for you, not for corporations, not for special interests, but for working families, for our seniors, for our kids, and for people who are willing to fight for Wisconsin. We are ready to get to work. We're ready to make sure health care, child care, and senior care are affordable and accessible here in our state. Public schools, union families, and we're going to make sure that you have the ability to organize for better wages, better benefits, and better working conditions. And we are going to protect your right to reproductive freedom. That is not a politician's decision. We are going to make sure that corporations and the wealthy 1% pay their fair share here in our state. As your Lieutenant Governor, I promise that this is the Wisconsin that David and I will be fighting for. You know, campaign, I've made jokes about David being my future work bestie. You might have heard it a few times. And tonight, Wisconsin, you could not have picked a better person to be our next governor. I got to know David when I was running for state treasurer as a political nobody from Eau Claire. And I want to tell you a little bit about the David Crowley that I know. Because David doesn't just talk about working families, he comes from a working family. You know, David grew up in one of the poorest zip codes in all of Wisconsin, and he struggled. He dealt with poverty and housing instability, and it's why he got into public service. You know, he became an organizer, a legislator, and eventually the youngest county executive right here in Milwaukee. He balanced the budget. He cut property taxes. He expanded affordable health care and affordable housing. I mean, he even brought Democrats and Republicans together to get ---- done in our state. I mean, we are talking about the guy who negotiated the deal to keep the World Series Milwaukee Brewers right here in Milwaukee. For working families isn't just a slogan for David, it's a reality, and he's going to make one hell of a governor. I started my speech tonight talking about how together we're going to make history today. And I was thinking about this and it reminded me about our first day on the bus. We were talking about how incredible it was going to be if David becomes the first black governor of Wisconsin. Talking about it, all of a sudden his daughter Ava said, there's never been a black governor before? Not ever? He was shocked. And it was really sweet. And it is a testament to the Wisconsin that David is gonna build right here in Wisconsin. A Wisconsin where our children can grow up and be anything they wanna be. A Wisconsin where opportunities are endless and where if you can imagine it, you can make it happen. And a Wisconsin that believes in you and has the resources to help you achieve your dreams. And tonight, Wisconsin, we showed the whole country that that is the Wisconsin we are going to build together. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for believing in us.