Wisconsin Dem's Top Priority: Driver's Licenses for Illegal Immigrants

The Democratic nominee for Wisconsin secretary of state says her top goal if elected is getting driver’s licenses into the hands of illegal immigrants, according to an interview she gave WMTV in Madison. JoCasta Zamarripa, a Milwaukee alder and former state Assembly member, told WMTV Capitol reporter Vanessa Kjeldsen that she hopes Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Crowley will be the governor who signs it.

“My number one priority is to see the governor sign driver’s licenses for undocumented Wisconsinites into law. And I hope that that governor will be David Crowley,” Zamarripa said in a clip Kjeldsen posted on X on Oct. 15. That clip had drawn more than 320,000 views by Saturday, according to X’s public view count.

Democratic candidate for Wisconsin Secretary of State JoCasta Zamarripa: "My number one priority is to see the governor sign driver's licenses for undocumented Wisconsinites into law. And I hope that that governor will be David Crowley…" pic.twitter.com/flOhsit4Qo

— Vanessa Kjeldsen (@VanessaKjeldsen) October 15, 2026

Asked whether Crowley had signed on, Zamarripa acknowledged the two had not yet talked about it. “We’re going to talk soon, but I feel confident,” she said, according to a transcript published by The Gateway Pundit. She added that Crowley “was supportive” of her driver’s license legislation when he served in the Assembly, according to Wisconsin Right Now, which also reported the remarks.

Zamarripa argued the change would make roads safer, saying it would mean “more folks with a driver’s license driving on our roads” and “more folks accessing affordable” auto insurance, according to The Gateway Pundit’s transcript.

An office that doesn’t issue licenses

The secretary of state’s office would not give Zamarripa the power to deliver on that promise. WMTV reported that the office oversees official state records and helps manage state trust funds, and Zeale, a CatholicVote news site, reported that driver’s licenses are issued by the state Department of Transportation. Zamarripa conceded the point in the WMTV interview. “I’ll no longer be that legislator with the vote in that way, but I believe I can use the office as a platform. I’ll be able to use my soapbox,” she said.

Zamarripa has pushed the idea for years. As a legislator she introduced bills to let people in the country illegally get driver’s cards, according to Zeale, and none of them became law. Wisconsin Assembly records show she was the lead author of 2017 Assembly Bill 727, which would have let the Department of Transportation issue licenses to applicants who could not prove lawful presence in the United States. Crowley, then a state representative, was listed among its cosponsors, according to the same legislative record.

Republicans pounce

Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Tiffany’s campaign seized on the remarks. “David Crowley and every Democrat in Wisconsin supports giving illegal aliens driver’s licenses and free in-state college tuition,” the Tiffany War Room account wrote on X, according to Wisconsin Right Now. “A vote to give Democrats power is a vote to put illegal aliens over Wisconsinites.”

Tiffany also responded on X that “our number one priority is to protect American citizens,” according to Zeale, and pointed to a federal bill he cosponsored that would cut a federal law enforcement grant to states that license illegal immigrants. Zeale reported that the bill has not passed the House.

Zamarripa’s Republican opponent, businessman Jay Schroeder, is running on a different message. Schroeder wants to move election oversight into the secretary of state’s office and abolish the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission, according to WMTV. “All it is is election integrity,” Schroeder told the station. Zamarripa called that plan “dangerous” in the same report.

The seat is open because Democratic Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski is running for lieutenant governor on Crowley’s ticket, WMTV reported. Crowley led Tiffany 49% to 46% among likely voters in a Marquette Law School poll taken Sept. 16-23, within the margin of error, according to Zeale. The general election is Nov. 3.

Sources

• Vanessa Kjeldsen (WMTV) on X, Oct. 15, 2026
• WMTV: Wisconsin secretary of state candidates split on purpose, scope of office
• Wisconsin Right Now
• The Gateway Pundit
• Zeale
• Wisconsin Legislature: 2017 Assembly Bill 727

Reporting by Daily Beltway.