Voters in northern Wisconsin chose Michael Alfonso to represent the 7th Congressional District, the largest district in the state, covering most of the northern part of Wisconsin.
Alfonso, a Republican who has not held office before, defeated Democrat Fred Clark, a former state lawmaker from Bayfield. He will take the seat held by Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany, who did not seek reelection and ran for governor instead.
At 26, Alfonso will be the youngest member of Congress. He was born in February 2000, was 1 year old during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and first voted in a presidential election in 2020. He is 49 years younger than Rep. Gwen Moore, the oldest member of Wisconsin's House delegation.
Alfonso is the son-in-law of U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who represented the same district from 2011 to 2019. Alfonso said his focus is the issues facing the 7th District. He lives in Hayward with his wife, Evita Duffy, and their young daughter, and works as an accountant for the Diocese of Superior.
On the campaign trail, Alfonso backed President Donald Trump's agenda and pointed to affordability, support for first-time home buyers, energy policy and health care costs. He said a first priority in Congress would be legislation on Title IX and women's spaces.
