End of year interviews typically have the same format: Ask the politician to wrap up the old year and describe what they want to achieve in the new year. But in December 2023, it was clear 2024 could bring in some changes, and Here & Now wanted to know what Wisconsin’s legislative leaders would call success.

This was before the Wisconsin Supreme Court had declared the state would have new legislative maps, when Joe Biden was the Democratic nominee for president, and some Republicans were still trying to find an alternative to Donald Trump as their nominee.

So, as 2024 came to a close, Here & Now asked the legislative leaders to reassess their vision of success.

In that 2023 interview, Wisconsin Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer, D-Racine, was asked how she would determine success over the year, and what are the criteria she uses to judge whether it was a successful year and campaign going into next winter.

“So, in terms of our work inside of the Capitol, I would say we as Assembly Democrats really have three priorities. We protect the governor’s veto and we prevent far right legislation from moving forward in Wisconsin,” Neubauer said Dec. 6, 2023.

At that time, Neubauer was looking in two directions as the minority leader. With only 35 members, she had to make sure everyone was present on floor days to prevent Republicans from having the two-thirds majority needed to overturn vetoes by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, and with a redistricting case in front of a liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, she was looking at recruiting candidates to run for office in 2024.

“We are again recruiting candidates and building our infrastructure so that we are in a great position regardless of what happens in the court, but particularly if there are fair maps to be able to compete for the majority,” Neubauer said in December 2023.

Democrats did prevent any Republicans veto overrides from occurring, and they picked up 10 seats in the Assembly in the November 2024 election.

In December, Here & Now asked Neubauer to reassess her vision of success.

“On the campaign side, of course, we’re always going for the majority. We didn’t quite get there this year. But again, in a tough year for Democrats, we’re really pleased with the gains that we did make this cycle,” Neubauer said in an interview on Dec. 11, 2024. “We’ve got folks who are set up really well for two years from now. In many of these districts, we didn’t have competitive Assembly races for over a decade. Now, we’ve got grassroots infrastructure, we’ve got experienced candidates. We’ve got local folks who are mobilized and excited to participate in those competitive elections. And I think we’ve learned a lot about how to run in this new environment.”

In the state Senate, the minority leader in 2023 was state Sen. Melissa Agard, D-Madison, but she left that December to run for Dane County Executive, a position she won in the November 2024 election.

In an interview on Nov. 27, 2023, Here & Now asked Agard how she would define success one year from then.

“You know, I think that success a year from now is going to continue ensuring that everyone knows that their vote does matter and that it is safe and secure here in the state of Wisconsin,” Agard said. “I think that having success here in Wisconsin is picking up more seats for Democrats in the Senate and in the Assembly, and being able to have the governor’s back.”

State Sen. Dianne Hesselbein, D-Middleton, is now the minority leader in that chamber.

Democrats picked up four seats in the state Senate, putting them in position to compete for the majority in 2026.

Here & Now asked Hesselbein in an interview on Dec. 11, 2024, how she would grade Agard’s prediction for what success was in 2024, and what she thinks has been accomplished.

“She got an A-plus. Yeah, I think those are great things to be aspirational. And I think she did just that,” Hesselbein said.

At the end of 2023, Republicans weren’t sure what new legislative maps would mean for their large majority, and they were divided on whether Donald Trump should be the party’s nominee for president in 2024.

Here & Now asked Speaker Robin Vos on Dec. 20, 2023 how he would judge success one year later.

“Coming back with a good, strong majority is a good way. Boy, if we have a Republican president, that would be a big success and better for the country. Hopefully we’ve been fighting inflation. We’d actually have a world that looks at America with respect, and most importantly, we’d have a budget that is affordable for the next generation, not driving us into bankruptcy with inflation. I also feel like we will, hopefully at the time, have the ability to help, hopefully have a good, strong budget to be able to move forward,” Vos said. “So I think the number one thing, of course, is looking at what happens in the elections. That’s how we always judge where we are. But we’ve had so many successes this time, we’ll have to kind of work on what’s going to happen in the next session.”

Republicans lost seats in the November 2024 election, but won enough of the swing districts to maintain their majority, and Vos will continue his run as the longest-serving Assembly Speaker in state history.

In an interview on Dec. 19, 2024, Here & Now asked Vos how he would grade his prediction.

“I guess that’s pretty good, actually. I’m glad I did that. I mean, obviously, we have a GOP president — that’s good for the country. We kept the majority. The Democrats were certain that if they had new maps, they would be able to get the majority. What I’ve said for really the entire time I’ve been elected is we have better candidates, a better message and people who work harder. We prove that correct — that’s great,” Vos said. “Inflation — that’s what we’re going to, that’s our last step in the equation, because I really thought that those tax cuts would have already taken effect. Here we are where Gov. Evers kept the money in the treasury — we’re still going to have a chance to correct that. One last thing, and maybe I’ll get all three right.”