Aiden Vollmer, a first-year political science and integrated strategic communications (ISC) double-major at UW-Eau Claire, was elected to the Eau Claire County Board of Supervisors during the election on Tuesday, April 7..

Vollmer will be representing Ward 18, which includes all of UW-Eau Claire’s upper campus and will become the youngest member of the Board of Supervisors, as well as one of the youngest people to ever hold office in Wisconsin.

The Eau Claire County Board of Supervisors features 29 ward representatives who, according to Vollmer, act as an “arm of the state” to localize statewide initiatives but also “push agenda to solve issues within the community.”

Vollmer will be succeeding Jim Dunning, who represented Ward 18 for 20 years on the Board of Supervisors but did not run for reelection in 2026.

Vollmer has already done work with campus government, including acting as the communications intern for Student Senate and hosting a school board forum, but he has held other government-related positions before attending UW-Eau Claire.

“I became the first ever student member of the Mondovi Business Association,” Vollmer said. “With my role, I was representing students, and I was able to propose and eventually pass a new scholarship given to students who took college classes throughout high school.”

With the Mondovi Business Association, Vollmer said he helped fund various charity events. Vollmer also worked as a high school ambassador at Chippewa Valley Technical College, and did advocacy work and involvement with local government. 

Through these positions, Vollmer said he was able to build relationships with local business leaders, city council members, county supervisors and state legislators.

Vollmer said it is partly due to these connections, not just with legislators and board members, but also the communities he lives in, that inspired him to run for office. 

“I grew a very deep dedication to all of those around me and to other people who might want some of these same opportunities,” Vollmer said. “When I came to UW-Eau Claire, I came with the same thought that this is my community. Eau Claire is home to me.”

Vollmer said he wants to serve his community, especially on-campus, by being a voice for the often underrepresented student body in the local government.

“I want to open a door so underprivileged people [and] young people finally have a voice and someone advocating for them,” Vollmer said. “Eau Claire County has the fifth youngest average population for a county in Wisconsin. Our youngest county board supervisor is 45.”

Michael Hansen, a third-year creative writing major and the Intergovernmental Affairs Commission Intern for Student Senate, emphasized the importance of giving university students a voice in the local government.

“It’s good to finally have some representation,” Hansen said. “An entire part of the city is the university, a lot of tax dollars are university-generated. It can also show university students that [local government] matters.”

Hansen said the local government plays an important role in many issues students care about, especially off-campus housing and having a student representative could help bring these issues and perspectives into the spotlight.

Vollmer said he’s an advocate for affordable housing, but that his top priority in office is making sure everyone has their voices heard. 

“Young people haven’t had their voice heard yet,” Vollmer said. “I want to use my voice to push initiatives that will help college students, high school students or even young people who are getting into the workforce, trying to buy their first home.”

Vollmer will be representing Ward 18 for a two-year term but said he doesn’t plan on running again. Instead of being a long-term representative, Vollmer said he’d rather help set a precedent.

“When I get out of office, I plan to find another student and help run their campaign so they can get on to the County Board,” Vollmer said. “[Ward] 18 is made [up] of about 80 percent students. If we don’t have a student in that position, then they aren’t being properly represented.”

Vollmer said he wouldn’t encourage students to run for office unless they’re very interested, given the high commitment of the position. For anyone who is interested in government, though, Vollmer said running for office offers many benefits.

“You [run for office] for the reward of being there for your community and your peers,” Vollmer said. 

Vollmer said he encourages every student, though, to stay up to date with local government and not just what’s going on in Washington.

“People ignore local government because it’s not as flashy,” Vollmer said. “But so much change can happen at the local level, and for a lot of us, Eau Claire is our community.”

Vollmer said anyone interested in running for a city or county position or anyone with questions about local government, can feel free to reach out to him.

“I am glad to help in any way I can for getting this campus more involved in the community,” Vollmer said.

Vollmer will be inaugurated as a County Board supervisor on Tues. Apr. 21 at 7 p.m. at the Eau Claire County Courthouse.

Coleman can be reached at [email protected].