🗳️ RFK Jr. really wants off the ballot

🗳️ RFK Jr. Wants Off Wisconsin Ballot

• Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. isn’t finding it easy to get his name removed from the Wisconsin ballot in November. The third-party candidate dropped out of the presidential race last month and endorsed Republican candidate Donald Trump.
• But the Wisconsin Elections Commission voted to keep him on the ballot. State law says independent candidates who submit nomination papers before the Aug. 6 deadline can't be taken off from the ballot unless they die.
• Kennedy has challenged that decision in court, but Dane County Judge Stephen Ehlke denied that motion Monday. On Wednesday, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals said it will hear Kennedy’s case. [Channel 3000]

🥪 School Lunch Program Is Deep in the Red

• The Madison Metropolitan School District’s nutrition department is facing significant budget problems due to rising food costs and dropping student participation.
• The department used $1.5 million from the district’s general education fund to cover expenses last school year. Another $2.9 million is set to be transferred this school year.
• Director of Food and Nutrition Josh Perkins presented a plan Monday to the School Board to stabilize the department’s finances over the next eight school years. Administrators are seeking to nearly double participation rates over the next decade to balance the department’s budget. [WSJ]

🏠 City Building ‘Missing Middle’ Townhomes

• The City of Madison broke ground Tuesday on a project to redevelop city-owned vacant duplexes at 1309 and 1401 Theresa Terrace into a new set of townhomes that will be permanently affordable.
• The project aims to address the so-called “Missing Middle” in Madison’s housing stock – affordable housing that bridges the gap between apartments and single-family homes.
• While the Theresa Terrace project is modest, city officials hope developers will be encouraged to explore similar “Missing Middle” projects on their own properties. [City of Madison, WPR]