Remembering Daniel L. Howell Jr.

Daniel L. Howell, Jr. passed away sometime during the last half of May 2025. Dan was a member of the Republican Party of Dane County and had recently been a write in candidate for Mayor of the City of Madison during the 2023 spring elections. He had a big heart and a lot of life experiences that made him a wonderful colleague in Dane County politics. Dan Howell had a future in Dane County because of his unique background, positive outgoing personality, and his willingness to conquer anything.

His Passing. Dan’s passing was sudden and unexpected and may have been cardiovascular. With all the HIPAA obstacles and other privacy barriers, there is a lot about his passing that couldn’t be found out including access to an obituary. He had talked about aspects of his life but not specifics that would help flesh out his story now. He was about 58 years of age.

Understood Urban Life. Dan had a future in Dane County because of his unique background and later-in-life learned points of view. He had challenging life experiences that made him understand how communities should work and how they can get into trouble. He later used that knowledge to consult young people and people in trouble. He said “I HATE hardcore drugs and there will be a war on drugs when I get elected into political office.” He had a citation from the Madison Police Department for his work with Porchlight, a community organization dealing with homelessness.

Political Potential. Politically, he was unafraid of Madison and Dane County because he clearly saw the problems and knew how to address them. His write-in race for mayor was started very late, had little resources, didn’t attract much help, and was mostly word of mouth. He never the less won more than 700 votes. To an experienced political person, that demonstrated the ability to understand people and win them over. With very modest resources and a moderate team, he could have garnered 10% of the vote and would have been launched as a public person. He also was good for Republicans and conservatives. He brought reality to them and challenged their views. He would have had an impact here.

High School Football – Dan grew up in Ohio. He played football at Alliance High School, graduating in 1985 and was ranked nationally. From his Instagram account he wrote about his achievements: “I was a beast coming out of high school in NE Ohio, ranked second nationally for TE’s (offensive tight end), running a solid 4.5 in the 40 yard dash, averaging 18.8 yards a catch and over 9 touchdowns my junior year in high school! No wonder I had over 100 colleges recruiting me my senior year!”

Badger Football – The University of Wisconsin football program attracted Dan and he became a proud member of the Badger football team. It’s been difficult to get his background information although the effort is still being made. His enthusiasm for the Badgers continued his whole life. From an Instagram post Dan wrote this:

“This is 39 years of being a Badger! From 1985 to 2024, choosing the University of Wisconsin-Madison, over other universities like Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, Miami Hurricanes and many many others! Too bad, there were no NIL, no transfer portal and no the 6 years option, otherwise this would NOT be a post! I had three different college head coaches in my first three seasons and I went (14-42) in 5 seasons, which was depressing MAJORLY! I made great friendships with many of my former teammates and many of them became very successful, like former Badger HC Paul Chryst!”

UW Graduate – Dan did not graduate from UW originally, but came back to Madison to finally earn his degree. He couldn’t have been more thrilled. Dan L Howell, Jr. had his Bachelor of Science degree conferral date on May 12, 2024. He had a major in Political Science. He wrote this in an Instagram post: “I’m a COLLEGE GRADUATE. I had the opportunity of coming back to college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison 31 years later in 2021 and graduating on May 11, 2024, FINALLY with a Bachelor of Science degree in political science! “I have 221 total credits, 8 years as an undergraduate, and I changed my major 6 times! “Lets see if we can put that degree to use by putting a Badger in political offices in the near future! I just might become more successful and more popular than my friend and my former teammate, Paul Chryst!” He also had some educational work at the University of Virginia in 2006 including Studied Internship.

Of God and Man. Dan wrote about himself: “Man of God & Strong Warrior Good person and I love all people.” In private conversations, he would refer to his faith often. He was a member of different local churches. In his background he wrote on @dan87howell: “I was a preacher for 16 years 1996 -2011 on the East Coast!” In writing about his plan to run for mayor in 2027 he wrote on @dan87howell: “I’m a strong Christian, registered Republican & running for Madison Mayor in 2027, ex Badger football player & UW-Madison grad n 2024 BS in Political Science!”. He would have an interesting impact and it would have been a great race.

Dan was born in Chicago, moved to Alliance, Ohio in 1975 where he went to high school and played football after which he played football at UW-Madison. After college he went to Atlanta, Georgia in 1991 and Tampa, Florida in 1992 before returning to Madison in 2020. He was married and had a couple of kids, later divorced. He was a Democrat until finding the this county’s Republican Party. Dan’s outlook on life: “It is, what it is.” He accepted things as they were but always strived for more. Dan was the kind of man on which political change is built.

Author Kim M. Babler is a longtime political activist in south-central Wisconsin and the state.