Democrat Tara Johnson formally launched her campaign Monday to unseat state Sen. Dan Kapanke, R-La Crosse, in the 32nd District.

“We need a state senator who has a proven track record of passing balanced budgets and wisely investing taxpayers’ money,” said Johnson, a La Crosse County supervisor from the town of Shelby. “We need a state senator who understands the issues affecting our community and will work to find innovative solutions to the problems we face.”

Johnson, who made her announcement at the Lakeview Business Park in West Salem, called her race against Kapanke “tough, but very winnable.” She said she intends to spend the campaign talking to residents of the 32nd District to “hear what matters most to them.”

“Their values will be the values that I vote for on the floor of the state Senate,” said Johnson. “This is our campaign for change, and the contrast could not be more clear. Ours is a campaign of working hard, of innovation, collaboration and solving problems. Theirs is a legacy of status-quo, delays, partisanship, and inaction. Ours is a campaign of getting things done.”

Asked whether she was referring specifically to Kapanke, Johnson said, “As much as he’s been an elected official ... he’s part of the folks who are in Madison now not getting things done.”

“I agree with her,” Kapanke said Monday. “That’s why since I was elected in 2004 I’ve been working with the other side on issues that are important to the people of western Wisconsin.”

Kapanke cited his work with state Rep. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, on access to dental care for Medicaid recipients, noting that Johnson also has worked with them on the issue.

Johnson has served on the La Crosse County Board for eight years, and has chaired the county’s Health & Human Services Board until recently. Johnson made her announcement at the Lakeview Business Park, a cooperative venture between La Crosse County and the village of West Salem, where 200 new jobs have been created.

At the announcement, Shilling introduced Johnson and called her a “community problem-solver ... who likes to get things done.”

The 32nd state Senate District includes all of La Crosse, Vernon and Crawford counties, and parts of Monroe and Richland counties.

Kapanke, who lives in the town of Campbell and is co-owner of the La Crosse Loggers baseball team, was elected in 2004, and has already announced his re-election plans.

Johnson and her husband, Tim Padesky, own TD Padesky Electric Inc., an electrical contracting company in La Crosse. They have two children, Nicholas and Layna.

Johnson was executive director of the La Crosse Area United Way from 1993 until 2000, when she left United Way to raise her family. She also was elected to the La Crosse County Board in 2000, and has risen to be vice chair of the board.

The 32nd District race has been “targeted” by the State Senate Democratic Committee, but Johnson said she does not know how much financial support she will get from the party.

In 2004, Kapanke spent $325,000 on the race and received 52.5 percent of the vote, compared to $160,000 spent by Democrat Brad Pfaff, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.