Patrick Marley and Molly Beck

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MADISON - Tony Evers took over as governor Monday, giving Democrats an opportunity to help chart the state’s direction for the first time in eight years.

Just after he was sworn in as Wisconsin's 46th governor, Evers emphasized the need to find compromise on health care, roads and school funding.

"We cannot fix these problems unless people come before politics," Evers said. "We’ve become paralyzed by polarity and we’ve become content with division. We’ve become indifferent to resentment and governing by retribution."

As his first act as governor, Evers issued two executive orders requiring state agencies to develop policies prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and to improve morale and recognition of state employees.

The challenges ahead for Evers are many, as he was reminded soon after the election when Republican lawmakers and outgoing GOP Gov. Scott Walker swiftly approved laws to limit his authority.

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Republicans will hold large majorities in the Legislature for at least the next two years, meaning Republicans and Democrats will have to work together if they want to get anything done. Both said they were eager to do that but also acknowledged they are at odds over taxes, health care, school funding and economic development.

The potential compromises and fights will come in the months ahead, rather than on Monday, a day of ceremonies.

"Folks, let's polka tonight and get to work tomorrow," Evers declared.

Evers was sworn in by Supreme Court Chief Justice Patience Roggensack at a noon ceremony in the Capitol rotunda. Also taking the oath of office were Mandela Barnes as lieutenant governor, Josh Kaul as attorney general, Sarah Godlewski as state treasurer and Doug La Follette as secretary of state. All but La Follette are new to their offices.

All of those who won statewide office are Democrats, giving their party a clean sweep for those posts for the first time since 1982.

Kaul condemns GOP lame-duck maneuvers

Kaul condemned the laws Republicans passed in December that curtailed the powers of the offices he and Evers took Monday.

"That action — unprecedented in Wisconsin and designed to hinder our ability to do the jobs that voters elected us to do — will have an impact," Kaul said. "But I want to make clear that irrespective of the actions taken by the lame-duck Legislature, the priorities of the Wisconsin Department of Justice are changing."

He said he would make sure schools are safe, ramp up environmental enforcement and advocate for universal background checks for gun purchases.

Godlewski noted Republicans tried to eliminate her office, but the idea was rejected by voters in a statewide referendum.

"It's hard to believe we nearly lost this constitutional office, but together we made our voices heard," she said.

Calls for compromise, signs of division

The Senate and Assembly held separate ceremonies in their chambers to swear in their members. The partisan picture there is very different from the executive branch, with Republicans holding a 63-35 majority in the Assembly and a 19-14 majority in the Senate.

A special election will be held early this year to replace Democratic Rep. Peter Barca of Kenosha, who is stepping down to take a job as Evers’ revenue secretary. The seat leans Democratic.

Members of both parties talked about bipartisanship.

"May we dare to transcend divisiveness and party line," Evers said. "May we have courage in our conscience. And may we be willing to do what’s best for the next generation rather than the next election."

Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, a Milwaukee native and the state's first African-American to be elected to the office, signaled he would use his office that has few official duties to focus on issues prominent in Milwaukee.

"I intend to focus the lieutenant governor’s office on the core principles of equity and sustainability," Barnes said. "We have a responsibility to make sure that opportunity exists in every community across our state. That starts with access to health care, great schools in your neighborhood, and clean drinking water in our homes. A person’s ZIP code should not determine their destiny."

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, a Rochester Republican, compared Wisconsin's government to a three-lane highway. Lawmakers will need to drive in the center lane for the next two years even though Republicans will want to drive in the right lane and Democrats will want to drive in the left lane, he said.

"In order to not wind up broken down on the side of the road and have government gridlock, we will have to work together," he said.

He added: "There are some who will want us to take a back seat and allow the new governor to drive the car alone, but that isn't going to happen."

Despite the talk of compromise, differences showed themselves. Vos called the Legislature "the most important branch of government," called part of Evers speech "untoward" and cautioned against increased government spending.

Democrats, meanwhile, broke with recent tradition and did not vote for Vos for speaker and instead tried unsuccessfully to name Minority Leader Gordon Hintz of Oshkosh as speaker.

Vos blamed Hintz for the move, calling him a "hardcore left partisan" who wanted to "puff out his chest" now that there is a Democratic governor.

“I think Gordon Hintz is a hard-core left partisan who somehow thinks having a governor somehow means he’s going to puff out his chest. In the end, it doesn’t matter because I got elected (as speaker) either way.”

As he took over as governor, Evers gave up the post of state schools superintendent, a job he has held since 2009. He plans to appoint longtime Madison educator Carolyn Stanford Taylor to succeed him as schools superintendent.

RELATED:Tony Evers to appoint longtime Madison educator as next state schools chief

Five former governors attended Evers' inauguration ceremony, including Walker, who was still tweeting about his legacy just a couple of hours before the festivities began Monday.

Walker defends tenure on Twitter

In more than two dozen tweets, Walker on Sunday laid out highlights from his tenure as governor.

And on Monday morning, Walker tweeted a defense of his approach to campaigning and governing following the publication of a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story about Walker's popularity fading over eight years.

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Monday marks the first time since 1993 that Walker has not held public office.

Also attending Evers' swearing-in ceremony were former Govs. Jim Doyle, Scott McCallum, Tommy Thompson and Martin Schreiber, as were U.S. Sens. Tammy Baldwin and Ron Johnson.

After Monday's celebration, Evers' focus will be on crafting a two-year state budget. He has promised to include a $1.4 billion increase in school funding, a 10 percent income tax cut for the middle class and an expansion of health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.

Republican lawmakers have said they may set aside Evers' budget and write their own spending plan. Evers can rewrite whatever they give him using his veto powers.

The coming months will reveal the extent to which the two sides can negotiate compromises. One area to watch is transportation. Evers and Assembly Republicans support funneling more money into roads, but some Senate Republicans are dead set against doing that.

Republicans have held the governor's office and both houses of the Legislature since 2011, other than for a brief stint in 2012 when the Legislature was not in session and Democrats had a one-vote majority in the Senate.

With Evers as governor, Democrats for the first time in years will have a chance to block Republican plans. But without control of either house of the Legislature, Democrats will be limited in what they can do on their own.

RELATED:Despite losses in statewide races, GOP strengthens hold on Wisconsin Senate

In the Senate, Republicans welcomed three new members Monday, which added to their majority. Sen. André Jacque of De Pere defeated Democratic Sen. Caleb Frostman in the November election. Frostman will serve as Evers' secretary of workforce development.

Democrats did not gain any seats in November but hung on to the 31st Senate District in western Wisconsin, previously held by Sen. Kathleen Vinehout of Alma, who decided against running for another term as she mounted an ultimately unsuccessful campaign for governor.

Sen. Jeff Smith of Eau Claire replaces Vinehout.