Wisconsin, Minnesota primaries are next to feature progressive clash
with Democratic establishment
[August 10, 2026]
By SCOTT BAUER and JONATHAN J. COOPER
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Progressive candidates for governor in Wisconsin
and U.S. Senate in Minnesota are making their final pushes ahead of
Tuesday's election, increasing the pressure on a Democratic
establishment that has spent the year on its heels.
The primaries come a week after Abdul El-Sayed narrowly defeated Rep.
Haley Stevens in Michigan’s divisive and costly U.S. Senate primary. El-Sayed's
victory has energized the left while stoking fears among Democratic
Party leaders that the shift to the left, particularly in battleground
states like Michigan and Wisconsin, will make it more difficult to win
in November.
Wisconsin's chaotic primary pits progressive against governor's pick
In Wisconsin, democratic socialist Francesca Hong is trying to win a
four-way Democratic primary for governor where her top opponent has been
endorsed by popular Gov. Tony Evers, who isn't seeking a third term.
Evers got behind Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley on July 18,
the same day Crowley reentered the race after dropping out 10 days
earlier. Crowley rejoined after the candidate he backed, Lt. Gov. Sara
Rodriguez, ended her candidacy amid a campaign finance scandal.
Evers and Crowley were crisscrossing the state together in the last days
before final ballots are cast Tuesday.
Evers and more establishment Democrats were hoping to finally coalesce
around Crowley in the final days of the chaotic primary that saw two
other candidates drop out, most notably former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes
on July 29.
Barnes and Rodriguez, who were both seen as potential front-runners,
remain on the ballot and absentee votes already cast for them can’t be
undone.
Republicans are spending to influence the Democratic primary
Republicans are putting money behind Hong, thinking she will be the
better matchup for Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany in November. The
Republican Governors Association has spent nearly $3.6 million through
its Right Direction Wisconsin PAC on ads contrasting Hong with President
Donald Trump and playing up her liberal policies.
Crowley and other Democrats argue the ads are meant to bolster Hong's
standing in the primary because Republicans see her as the easier
opponent.
Evers projected confidence at a rally that attracted hundreds of people
in Hong’s hometown of Madison on Sunday night, saying Crowley was the
best chance Democrats had to defeat Tiffany.
“We’re going to win this thing,” Evers said, telling the Crowley
supporters that Tiffany would be “the worst governor in the history of
Wisconsin.”
“If Tom Tiffany wins in November that will be like electing Donald Trump
as governor of the state of Wisconsin,” he said.
Crowley urged Democrats to come together after the primary to beat
Tiffany.
“Our ultimate goal is to make sure we don’t have a MAGA extremist
occupying the governor’s office,” Crowley said.
Tiffany, one of the most conservative members of Congress, is endorsed
by Trump.
The president called Hong a communist in remarks on Wednesday, where he
mentioned a 2020 social media post by Hong calling for Thanksgiving to
be canceled. Asked about the post this week, Hong reversed herself and
said that Thanksgiving was her favorite holiday.
Trump won Wisconsin in 2016 and 2024, and Republicans have held
majorities in both chambers of the Legislature since 2011. Holding onto
the governor's office is key to Wisconsin Democrats' effort to gain full
control of state government for the first time in 16 years.
In the race to replace Tiffany, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean
Duffy's son-in-law Michael Alfonso is in a five-person Republican
primary. Alfonso, who is trying to represent Duffy's old congressional
district, has Trump's endorsement.
[to top of second column]
|
Candidates for Minnesota governor, from left, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.,
Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth, Mike Lindell and Kendall Qualls
participate in a forum at Farmfest, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026, in
Morgan, Minn. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
Minnesota primary comes in wake of immigration enforcement surge
In neighboring Minnesota, voters are choosing between moderate U.S.
Rep. Angie Craig and progressive Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in a
Democratic U.S. Senate primary that’s playing out in the aftermath
of Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement surge in the state.
The race has been shaped by the killing of Renee Good and Alex
Pretti by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis,
confrontations that were caught on camera and fueled a backlash to
Trump’s immigration policies.
Both Craig and Flanagan spent the weekend traversing the Twin Cities
metro area.
In a driveway in suburban Eagan on Sunday, Craig spoke to the angst
among Democratic primary voters who feel that Washington isn’t
working for them. Members of Congress need to stop trading stocks
and becoming lobbyists when they leave office, she said, and the
U.S. needs to restrict the flood of corporate campaign spending.
“But the only way we pass any of the progressive policies that all
of us here support is by winning elections and taking damn
majorities,” she said.
Unlike in Wisconsin, where the incumbent governor has endorsed a
candidate in the race to succeed him, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has
not gotten involved in the Senate primary. But his wife, Gwen Walz,
has endorsed Craig and campaigned with her on Sunday.
Flanagan campaigned Saturday with U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a
Maryland Democrat, who helped her make the case that Washington
needs a shakeup to root out the deep-pocketed forces propping up a
broken status quo.
“It is big corporations, it’s special interests who are putting
their thumb on the scale in our elections across the country,”
Flanagan said. “And it’s not just Republicans. It’s Democrats, too.”
The race has been one of the most expensive Minnesota has seen, with
millions of dollars backing both candidates, but disproportionately
falling in Craig’s favor.
Whoever wins the primary will be the frontrunner to replace retiring
Democratic Sen. Tina Smith in November. Minnesota voters haven’t
elected a Republican to a statewide office since 2006.
Mike Lindell, the founder of MyPillow, is a top Republican candidate
in the governor's race. He's endorsed by Trump, and he was a
prominent promoter of falsehoods about election fraud. U.S. Sen. Amy
Klobuchar is in a six-person primary on the Democratic side.
Democratic struggles also on display in other states' primaries
Tuesday
Two veteran Democratic incumbents in Connecticut face challenges
from the left.
Moderate Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont is running for a third term but
faces progressive state Rep. Josh Elliott. The Democratic nominee
will face Republican state Sen. Ryan Fazio in November.
Longtime Democratic U.S. Rep. John Larson, 78, is running for a 15th
term and his age and health have been major issues in the
four-person race.
Former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin narrowly won the party's
endorsement at its state convention in May. Other candidates are
Hartford Board of Education member Ruth Fortune and state Rep.
Jillian Gilchrest.
In Vermont, two Democrats are running in for a chance to take on
Republican Gov. Phil Scott.
Former child advocacy organization CEO Aly Richards boasts
endorsements from former Democratic Govs. Howard Dean and Madeleine
Kunin. She faces economist Amanda Janoo.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
