Brad Smith Embraces ‘Gracious Professionalism’ Because We are ‘Wisconsinites First’
Click on image to start the video.
In a conversation with CoCo Dems Update editor Bill Lubing, Wisconsin 6th Congressional District Democratic candidate Brad Smith connects lessons from a youth robotics program to the kind of congressional representative he wants to be: Curious, collaborative and present in the community.
“We’re Wisconsinites first before we’re partisans,” says the candidate, who caught up with the CoCo Dems at the annual picnic on September 19, 2026.
Smith is a longtime coach in FIRST LEGO League, where students in roughly fourth through eighth grades build and program robots, tackle an annual “innovation project” and present their ideas to adult judges. He says the program develops far more than technical ability:
Research and problem-solving: Students interview experts, identify challenges, test solutions and build prototypes.
Confidence and communication: Young participants learn to explain and defend their work before a panel.
“Gracious professionalism”: Teams compete while supporting and uplifting one another.
That last value came alive when an opposing team dropped and shattered its robot just before a competition round. Smith’s students immediately helped gather the pieces and helped put it back together—even though the teams were there to compete. For Smith, public service should follow the same principle: Hold firm values, but approach disagreement with questions, empathy and a search for common ground.
“Showing up and the first thing you do is punching somebody in the mouth will never get you to a solution,” he cautions.
Smith said months of door-knocking have reinforced that belief. At conservative households, he often responds to a quick dismissal by asking what residents believe is working and what needs to change. Those questions, he notes, “frequently open 15-minute conversations.” One Cedarburg voter told him she would consider supporting a Democrat for the first time because he listened.
Across the district, Smith says voters repeatedly raise concerns that cross party lines:
Affording food, housing, health care and education;
Protecting schools and special education funding;
Addressing rising property taxes; and
Safeguarding communities and the environment as data centers and transmission projects expand.
Smith offered a pointed contrast with incumbent Rep. Glenn Grothman. According to Smith, Grothman has not accepted invitations to 17 events where he could appear with Smith, including town halls and candidate forums, some which are nonpartisan.
Smith cites the pattern as more than a campaign anecdote: For voters deciding who will speak for them in Congress, he argues, participation and accountability begin with being willing to appear together, answer questions, and engage the public directly.
Smith also emphasizes the meaning of the office’s title: congressional representative. He says he has traveled throughout the district, invited people of every affiliation into conversation, and made accessibility central to his campaign.
He speaks a straightforward message: Democracy requires leaders who show up, listen and do the difficult work of building solutions with people who may not agree on everything.
Still photos provided by firstinspires.org and bradsmithforcongress.com.