Yee Leng Xiong Wants to be Your WI State Treasurer
Yee Leng Xiong spoke to the CoCo Dems at the March 14 monthly meeting. Here’s the video of his remarks.
Yee Leng Xiong is running for Wisconsin State Treasurer with a clear message: the office matters, and voters deserve to understand why.
“A lot of people don’t know what exactly the state treasurer does, and I think that’s honestly part of the problem,” Xiong told attendees at the March 14 CoCo Dems monthly meeting. He emphasized that the role exists to serve the public, not political power.
Xiong reminded listeners that Wisconsinites have already defended the office once before. When the legislature attempted to eliminate the position in 2018, voters chose to keep it. “They wanted somebody who was not accountable to the governor and not accountable to Wisconsin’s legislature,” he said, “but accountable to you as Wisconsinites—to be that independent fiscal watchdog.”
The responsibilities of the office are significant. The state treasurer oversees $1.6 billion in school trust funds that can support schools, libraries, and local infrastructure. “That’s money that could come back to helping build fire departments, purchasing fire trucks and police vehicles, [and] protecting our communities,” Xiong said.
Another core duty of the office is returning unclaimed property to residents. Xiong noted that nearly $950 million currently remains unclaimed across the state. “That’s money that should be in your pockets and helping you achieve your American dream,” he said.
Xiong also shared his long record of public service. He has held elected roles at the school board, county, and village levels, and ran a competitive Assembly race in 2024. He highlighted his success in engaging voters who had not previously participated, particularly within Hmong and AAIP communities.
Much of Xiong’s motivation comes from his family’s history as refugees. His parents fled Laos to escape persecution, enduring extraordinary hardship along the way. “They taught me that freedom isn’t free, and that service above self is more important than anything,” he said.
That lesson shaped his professional life, including his leadership of the Hmong American Center. When he became executive director at age 21, the organization was deeply in debt. By the time he left, “I left it with a $1.9 million budget and no debt.”
Xiong says he is ready to bring that same discipline and commitment to the treasurer’s office. “I’m ready to work on day one,” he said, calling the opportunity to serve Wisconsin “the honor of a lifetime.”