Howard Marklein

Howard Marklein was born in Madison, Wisconsin, and raised on a dairy farm in rural Spring Green, where he continues to reside.^[1] He graduated from River Valley High School in 1972 and went on to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting at the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater in 1976.^[2]

After college, Howard worked for First Wisconsin National Bank of Milwaukee (now U.S. Bancorp). He was recruited by Virchow, Krause, & Company, LLP (now Baker Tilly US, LLP) to work in their Dodgeville office. In 1979, he obtained his Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certification. Shortly after earning his CPA, Howard was promoted and transferred to the Whitewater and Fort Atkinson offices of Virchow, Krause, & Company, LLP. In 1984, he was promoted to Partner in the firm. Later, his practice was focused on forensic accounting and white collar crime investigations, for which he also became a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). He is now retired from this career.^[2]

Howard was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 2010, representing the 51st Assembly district, and was re-elected in 2012.

On April 7, 2013, Marklein announced that he would launch a primary challenge against incumbent state senator Dale Schultz.^[3] Schultz, a moderate Republican who sometimes crossed over and voted with Democrats, chose not to run for re-election after Marklein jumped out to an early lead in fundraising.^[4] With Schultz out of the race, Marklein won the nomination without opposition and went on to defeat Democrat Pat Bomhack in the general election.^[5][6]

He was elected by the Republican caucus as president pro tempore of the Senate for the 2017 and 2019 sessions. In 2021, he became the Senate co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee—the Wisconsin Legislature's powerful budget-writing committee.^[7] He retained that chairmanship in the 2023–2024 session.^[8]

Howard Marklein married Peggy McNeil, a registered nurse. They have two adult children, three stepchildren, and six grandchildren.^[1]