Waukesha municipal judge Steve Wimmer dies

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The death of Waukesha’s municipal judge has resulted in two distinct public acknowledgements: tributes from colleagues and family, and the process the city must quickly initiate to select a replacement.

Steve Wimmer, 68, died suddenly following a heart attack on Jan. 8, ironically just two days beyond the filing deadline for spring 2026 local elections. Wimmer also previously served a six-year tenure as an elected supervisor on the Waukesha County Board and practiced law locally for decades.

The news caught everyone by surprise, leaving family members and friends to process their feelings of grief while the city enacts a legal process of necessity, given that the municipal court is lacking a key official at City Hall.

Wimmer’s career mostly revolved around his legal expertise — a decades-long background as an attorney as well as his time as a municipal judge, a seat to which he was elected in 2018.

In his campaign that year, Wimmer stressed that his 32 years as a practicing attorney to that point had prepared him to serve in a legal role to which he had always held a strong interest.

“Furthermore, this would be an opportunity to continue my public service to the Waukesha community,” he said in a candidate profile article by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in January 2018.

But Wimmer’s story is about much more than nearly eight years as municipal judge.

“Judge Steve Wimmer and his family have deep roots within our Waukesha community,” Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly said in a statement following his death. “His kind presence will be sorely missed by us here at city hall and by our community.”

Prior to his judgeship, Wimmer served two terms, from 2006 to 2012, as a supervisor on the Waukesha County Board. In that role, he impressed others with his attention to detail on the public’s behalf.

“While Steve’s tenure on the County Board was relatively short, he added a certain professionalism,” County Board Chairman Jim Heinrich said in an email statement. “He did his homework. His perspectives and opinions were well thought out and added value on the issues before us.”

Heinrich, who joined the board as a supervisor in 2007, continued to retain a strong relationship with Wimmer more than a decade after Wimmer stepped away from the county seat.

“Even after his departure from the Board, and subsequent election to Municipal Judge, Steve maintained contact,” Heinrich said. “He periodically called and offered support and encouragement as I continued on the Board. I will treasure and miss his friendship.”

In two dozen comments posted on the City of Waukesha’s Facebook page, where Wimmer’s death was shared, others agreed he left his mark on the community, both as a judge as a friend.

“Judge Steve Wimmer was a compassionate and fair judge,” Hector Smedley said in one Facebook comment. “I just started to know him as my friend.”

On the business end of the spectrum, Wimmer’s death means there will be no eligible municipal judge candidate on Waukesha’s ballots on April 7.

According to city officials, Wimmer had filed his intention to seek re-election to the seat he has held since he succeeded local attorney and four-term municipal judge Joe Cook. As is often the case for municipal judge elections, no one filed as a challenger.

So, almost immediately, Waukesha officials began soliciting candidates to appoint within a three-week time frame.

The city, in a Jan. 14 news release, included details of how potential candidates can apply for a brief term, running from Feb. 3 to April 21, until voters select a full-term through 2030. Whoever is appointed, however, would not appear on the spring ballot, meaning hopeful candidates would have to mount their own write-in campaigns for the April 7 vote.