Current Representative Ron Kind (D–La Crosse) Median income 40,006 | Population (2000) 670,462 | |
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Area 13,565.50 sq mi (35,134.5 km) Distribution 43.15% urban
56.85% rural Ethnicity 96.6% White
0.5% Black
1.2% Asian
0.9% Hispanic
0.6% Native American
0.2% other | ||
Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district is a U.S. congressional district covering much of the Driftless Area in southwestern and western Wisconsin; The district includes the cities of La Crosse and Eau Claire. It borders the states of Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. Democrat Ron Kind has represented the district since 1997.
The political nature of the district is moderate with a slight lean to the left, given its combination of an overall rural and suburban character counterbalanced by two significant urban centers (Eau Claire and La Crosse) as well as most of the Wisconsin side of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. It historically elected moderate Republicans; before Kind's 1996 victory only two Democrats represented it in the 20th century.
John Kerry narrowly carried the district in 2004 with 51% of the vote. The district voted more Democratic in 2008, giving Barack Obama 58% of the vote and 41% to John McCain.
Living former Members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district
As of April 2015, two former members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district are alive.