In DNC speech, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson lauds federal infrastructure funds

A month after hosting the Republican National Convention, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson was in Chicago to address delegates to the DNC.

Johnson used a brief speech to the full Democratic National Convention Wednesday to praise the bipartisan infrastructure law championed by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Johnson said federal funding had helped revitalize Milwaukee’s Bronzeville neighborhood, which was once thriving with Black businesses, music and culture. The construction of the Interstate system decades ago had torn the neighborhood apart, Johnson said, but federal funding was bringing it back.

“With more green space, bike paths and walkable streets to serve the people who actually live there, the music is coming back,” Johnson said. “The culture is coming back. And thanks to the bipartisan infrastructure law, the opportunities are coming back.”

Biden visited Milwaukee in March to highlight the funding in one of several trips to he made to Wisconsin before dropping out of the presidential race.

Johnson was a vocal advocate for landing the RNC in Milwaukee, but the Democratic mayor has been a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump. He’s also expressed interest in running for governor should Gov. Tony Evers decide not to seek a third term.

Johnson, 37, is Milwaukee’s first elected Black mayor. He won his first election in 2022 and won a landslide victory for his full term in April.