Rep. Bob Donovan, a long-time Milwaukee political figure and former alderman on the city’s south side, has reignited his public safety crusade—this time from Madison.
Now serving in the State Assembly, Donovan is spearheading efforts to tackle the Milwaukee Police Department’s critical officer shortages. He’s pushing for command staff to return to patrol duty, pressing city leaders to settle a nearly three-year contract dispute with the Milwaukee Police Association, and calling for stronger, more strategic support for neighborhood policing.
In a letter to Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, Donovan pressed for a temporary reallocation of MPD’s sworn staff—including senior leadership—to bolster street-level enforcement. He also warned that the prolonged absence of a labor agreement undermines recruitment and officer morale.
On social media, Donovan has been vocal: “The police are so shorthanded, it’s almost impossible to deal with this chaos,” and pointed to the prolonged absence of a labor agreement as a major deterrent to rebuilding MPD ranks. At a public safety summit, MPD command staff echoed Donovan’s own warnings: “We’re outnumbered. We don’t have enough officers.”
Donovan’s public commitment to Milwaukee public safety predates his time in the Assembly. As an alderman, he repeatedly spotlighted the disparity between shrinking officer numbers and rising crime. In 2018, he warned, “The number of officers we have currently working our streets in Milwaukee is inadequate for the levels of crime and disorder,” criticizing budget cuts that fueled longer response times. He also questioned whether MPD could effectively patrol the lakefront and parks after reductions in sheriff’s deputies.
In 2015, Donovan told Urban Milwaukee that “Milwaukee does not have enough police, and the department has too many chiefs and not enough Indians,” calling for fewer administrators and more front-line officers. (RELATED: Wisconsin Refuses Trump Admin’s Request To Clean Up Voter Rolls)
The Milwaukee Police Department is facing one of its most severe staffing shortages in decades, the product of a long downward trend in officer numbers and an inability to replenish the ranks. In the mid-1990s, MPD employed more than 2,170 sworn officers. By 2019, that figure had fallen to just under 1,900.
According to the Badger Institute, the number of budgeted sworn positions dropped 16% between 1997 and 2022, while actual filled positions fell nearly 25%—a net loss of more than 530 officers over 25 years. Per capita, that means Milwaukee went from 350 officers per 100,000 residents in 1997 to 280 per 100,000 in 2022.
By late 2022, MPD’s vacancy rate had climbed to 11.2%, more than six times the 2019 rate, as voluntary departures outpaced the department’s ability to recruit and train replacements. That trend has only worsened. As of December 21, 2024, MPD had 1,587 sworn officers—221 short of its authorized strength of 1,808. Among rank-and-file positions, the authorized number is 1,505, but only 1,310 are filled, leaving a gap of 195. The Milwaukee Police Association estimates the department is roughly 200 officers short.
Recruitment struggles are compounding the crisis. The department has not received more than 1,000 applicants for officer positions in a single year since 2013, when 1,018 applied. In 2023, just 227 applications were submitted, despite hiring numbers remaining nearly flat—40 new hires in 2013 compared to 45 in 2023. This shrinking pool of candidates, combined with accelerated retirements and resignations since 2020, has left MPD unable to stabilize its workforce.
Donovan’s letter to Mayor Johnson was signed by 20 of his colleagues in the Assembly and Senate- many of them stretching from southwest Wisconsin to Sheboygan and the Northwoods. (RELATED: Congressman Says Wisconsin Sanctuary County Should Lose All Funding)
