Israel Ramon

In May 2019, Governor Tony Evers appointed Israel “Issy” Ramón as the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds. He won the democratic primary election in a landslide defeating his opponent 65% to 35% in August of 2020.  He ran unopposed in the general election becoming the first ever Latino Constitutional Officer in Wisconsin’s history.  Prior to his appointment, the Register of Deeds Office had been raided by the FBI for criminal wrongdoing by the prior Register of Deeds.  Ramón made a commitment to Governor Evers and the residents of Milwaukee County that he would clean up the Office by making it ethical, transparent, accountable to the public and follow state and federal laws.

Ramón began the process of reforming the Office immediately after being sworn in.  He instituted new financial rules relating to the processing of invoices, handling of disbursements and cashiering procedures. Ramón also redrafted all existing software and technology contracts to protect Milwaukee County residents and their real estate data.  He issued the first Request for Proposal (RPF) for its land records software program, saving the County $150,000 over the five-year term of the contract.  He has instituted mandatory customer service training for the Office staff to make them accountable to County residents for professional, helpful, and courteous service.  Ramón collaborated with the Milwaukee County Treasurer and Comptroller as well as Corporation Counsel to make sure that the Office complied with all fiscal and legal obligations in its operations.  He also cut wasteful spending by eliminating over $250,000 a year in unnecessary expenses.   Importantly, he fully completed all of the recommendations made by the Milwaukee County Audit Division in it’s Audit Report of February 2021.

Israel Ramón is a lifelong Democrat and member of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW), the Milwaukee County Democratic Party and the DPW Latino and LGBT caucuses.  He is a 1994 graduate of Marquette University Law School. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree, magna cum laude, in Management and Business and an Associate of Applied Science Degree.  Ramón grew up in a union household with his father, being a member of Laborers Local 152 in Chicago, IL.  Prior to being elected the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds, he was a partner in a labor and employment law firm representing both public and private sector labor unions across the State.  He practiced law for twenty-five years, concentrating his practice in Worker’s Compensation and Social Security Disability cases.

Ramón is the 2nd Vice President of the Wisconsin Register of Deeds Association and serves on the WRDA Board and Legislative Committee.  He is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin, a Fellow of the Wisconsin Law Foundation, a member of the Wisconsin Hispanic Lawyers Association, the LGBT Bar Association of Wisconsin, the Property Records Industry Association (Best Practices Committee), the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, the ACLU of Wisconsin, Citizens Action of Wisconsin, and Voces de la Frontera.

He currently serves on the Boards of United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS) and Safe & Sound.  He was formerly on the Boards of the ACLU of Wisconsin, Voces de la Frontera, the Spanish Centers of Kenosha, Racine and Walworth Counties, the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center, the Felmers O. Chaney Correctional Institute’s Citizens Advisory Board.  He also served as past president and secretary of the Wisconsin Hispanic Lawyers Association and was a member of the Milwaukee Water Commons – Water Equity Task Force.