Primaries: Wisconsin Democratiic gubernatorial too close to call

Aug. 11 (UPI) — The race for the Democratic nomination for Wisconsin’s governor between democratic socialist Francesca Hong and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley was too close to call early Wednesday, as primary ballots were being counted in six states.

Wisconsin

While primaries were being held in Alabama, Connecticut, Minnesota, South Carolina and Vermont, the Wisconsin gubernatorial race appeared to be a litmus test of whether the Democratic Party’s progressive wing was surging across the country after democratic socialist Abdul El-Sayed won Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary earlier this month.

The race is being projected as a progressive, Hong, running against a moderate, Crowley, with the possible future of the Democratic Party in play. In the swing state and an open governorship, much is on the line.

Hong, a chef by trade, is the first Asian American member of the Wisconsin Legislature, to which she was elected to in 2022. She’s running on a platform that includes a $20 minimum wage indexed to inflation, guaranteed paid leave, fully funded public schools, universal childcare, free school meals and higher taxes on large corporate profits and household income above $1 million a year.

Crowley is running on a moderate platform of affordability and expanding programs already in place, with an emphasize on housing, specifically liberalizing zoning to create houses closer to where people work and converting unused commercial and industrial space into apartments and mixed-use housing. He also supports raising the minimum wage to at least $15 and to $20 by 2030.

The polls closed at 8 p.m. local time.

Late Tuesday, Hong told supporters that while final results have yet to come in she is confident and ready to fight for her vision of Wisconsin.

“We are fighting to become once more what Wisconsin has always been — a place where our future is determined not by corporations and billionaires, but our future that’s determined by the working-cl*** people who live here,” she said.

“We fought through this primary because Wisconsinites have rejected the politics of fear, of apathy and division. We are here tonight because thousands and thousands of Wisconsinites across this great state came together in living rooms, in backyards, in bars, in church basements, in community centers, and we came together to demand something new and something better.”

The race is for an open governor’s mansion as Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, decided not to seek a third term.

The winner between Hong and Crowley will go against election denier Rep. Tom Tiffany, a supporter of President Donald Trump, who claimed the GOP nomination Tuesday night over 27-year-old Andy Manske in the two-candidate race.

Tiffany is running on a conservative platform of lowering taxes, a ban on sanctuary jurisdictions and greater accountability for schools.

During his victory speech Tuesday night, Tiffany framed November’s election as one about the identity and future of Wisconsin.

“This isn’t a typical election about red versus blue; this is an election about the very soul of the state of Wisconsin. It’s about what kind of Wisconsin we’re going to leave the next generation: Do we p*** on a Wisconsin built on freedom — freedom and opportunity — or do we accept a future where government gets bigger, taxes keep rising and opportunity becomes harder to find. Because at the heart of this election is a fundamental difference in how we see Wisconsin’s future,” he said.

Minnesota

In another Democratic race described as progressive vs. moderate, progressive Peggy Flanagan, the lieutenant governor of Minnesota and an Ojibwe activist, claimed the Democratic nomination for Senate over moderate Rep. Angie Craig, who has conceded defeat.

“I am truly honored and humbled to be Minnesota’s Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate,” Flanagan said in a social media statement.

“Thank you, Minnesota — for everything.”

Unofficial state results show that as of about 11:30 p.m. CDT with nearly 95% of precincts reporting Flanagan had nearly 59% of the vote to Craig’s nearly 39.5%.

Flanagan was poised Tuesday night to go against sportscaster and conservative Michele Tafoya, who claimed the GOP nomination for the Senate seat. Unofficial state results show she had 52% of the vote, with Adam Schwarze far behind with 23.76%.

“Minnesota is going 100 miles an hour in the wrong direction after years of single-party rule,” she said in a statement after her win. “They’ve turned our state into a national embarr***ment.”

They are running for the Senate seat of retiring Sen. Tina Smith, a Democrat who took office in 2018. She endorsed Flanagan to succeed her.

“For now I just want to say how incredibly proud I am of Peggy Flanagan and the people-powered campaign she ran,” Smith said in a statement late Tuesday.

In the state’s gubernatorial race to replace Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, Trump-endorsed Mike Lindell, election denier and MyPillow CEO, was poised to lose the GOP nomination to Lisa Demuth, the Minnesota House speaker.

Unofficial state results show the Lindell-Phillip Parrish ticket won 32.38% of the vote, while the Lisa Deemuth-Ryan Wilson ticket had 43.5%.

On the Democratic side, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, with Ben Schierer as her running mate, was poised for a landslide victory, with unofficial results showing them with nearly 90% of the vote.

“In Minnesota, trust is not given, it’s earned,” Klobuchar told supporters in claiming victory. “That trust comes with an expectation, which is results — results that you can see and feel in your life, results in making life more affordable, making our government work and getting rid of the fraud. Results in expanding our economy with a growth agenda. Results that will transform out government and, yes, I will be a transformative governor.”

Klobuchar and Demuth are now poised to battle it out for the governor’s mansion after Walz ended his campaign for a third term amid incessant attacks from the Trump administration. Trump views Walz as an adversary as he ran as Kamala Harris’ running mate in the 2024 presidential election. After Trump returned to the White House, a litany of investigations, probes and reviews were launched into Minnesota from the White House.