Sara Rodriguez: Why a Nurse-Turned-Politician Is Wisconsin’s (Healthcare) Answer

Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez is the only candidate for governor with real healthcare experience — a nurse, a former CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service officer, and a healthcare leader who has actually worked inside the system she's now running to fix.

In this conversation, we get into what sets her apart in the 2026 Wisconsin governor's race.
Rodriguez opens up about her time as an EIS officer — including being on one of the first CDC teams into New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina — and how that experience shaped how she thinks about public health, crisis response, and government's obligation to show up when people are most vulnerable.

We also don't shy away from the contrast with the other side of the aisle, exposing how Tom Tiffany has consistently voted in line with Donald Trump to take away abortion and reproductive healthcare, gut Medicaid, and undermine the ACA.

We talk about:
Her path from ER nurse to CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service officer to Lieutenant Governor
Her firsthand account of responding to Hurricane Katrina
How she's the only healthcare professional in the governor's race and why that matters
Her plan to fix Wisconsin's broken healthcare system

Follow Sara Rodriguez:
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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@saraforwi

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Dr. Kristin Lyerly is an OB-GYN based in northeast Wisconsin and a leading voice on healthcare, politics, and the issues shaping our collective future. As the named physician plaintiff in a landmark Wisconsin abortion decision, she brings a perspective to these conversations that goes beyond politics. New episodes drop every week. Subscribe to stay current on reproductive rights, health politics, all things Wisconsin, and everything else that matters.

Producer: Abraham Lyerly
Music: Nic Tierman
Graphics: Nathaniel Gonzalez