Biography

Send to friend

Scott Walker was born on November 2, 1967 to Llew and Pat Walker in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He spent his earliest years in Plainfield, Iowa, where Llew served as pastor of a local church.

The Walker family knew nearly all of Plainfield’s roughly 450 residents. In 1976, a patriotic young Scott, determined to purchase a flag for Plainfield City Hall, went door to door soliciting donations from his neighbors.

The family moved to Delavan, Wisconsin in 1977 when Scott’s father was called to pastor a church there. Scott was involved in sports, band, church, and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, remaining active in the Boy Scouts of America to this day.

While in high school, Scott was selected to attend the American Legion’s Badger Boys State Program in Ripon. There, he was selected as one of two representatives to Boys Nation in Washington, D.C. Both of these programs teach young men that the American form of government is stronger and more vital in today’s world of struggle and change than ever before. The experience opened Scott’s eyes to public service.

In 1986, Scott moved to Milwaukee to attend Marquette University. While still in school, he worked for IBM before leaving to work full-time in financial development for the American Red Cross.

Scott was elected to the State Assembly in 1993.  While there, he chaired several committees and authored important pieces of legislation that include: Truth-in-Sentencing, photo identification requirements to vote, and the elimination of the statute of limitations in sexual assault cases.  He was re-elected four times.

In 2002, Scott was elected County Executive to reform the scandal-ridden county government.  His election followed a recall campaign against then-Milwaukee County Executive Tom Ament as a result of a county pension scandal. The media exposed a county plan that gave away millions in retirement benefits to county workers. The scandal rocked county government to its core and left taxpayers on the hook for millions in pension obligations

For the next seven years, Scott faithfully kept his promise to spend taxpayer money as if it were his own.  He cut the county’s debt by 10%, reduced the county workforce by more than 20% and authored seven consecutive budgets without increasing the property tax levy from the previous year.  Despite failing national and state economies, Milwaukee County recorded a budget surplus in 2008.  Re-elected in April of 2008, Scott received nearly 60% of the vote in a county that favored President Obama by 67%.

Scott and his wife, Tonette, live in Wauwatosa with their sons, Matt and Alex. They are active in the community and their church. Matt and Alex play sports, are active within their church, and are involved in Boy Scouts.