WASHINGTON — There’s a primary election in Wisconsin Tuesday. Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin is running unopposed in her party’s primary, and Madison businessman Eric Hovde faces nominal opposition for the Republican Senate nomination. The two are expected to go head-to-head in November.
Baldwin is seeking a third term in the U.S. Senate, as she tries to defend her seat that could determine control of the upper chamber next Congress. Hovde ran for the same seat in 2012 but lost the Republican primary. He’s giving it another go this year.
“If you look at Washington, it’s become completely broken. They get nothing done. All they do is squabble amongst themselves, and the last three and a half years, it’s been crushing to a lot of people in Wisconsin,” Hovde said. “So I think having somebody that comes from the private sector who actually understands how the economy works and how to grow and build companies, I think, is really important. Our country was meant to be founded by citizen legislators, not career politicians.”
Hovde develops real estate in Wisconsin and is the CEO of Sunwest Bank. During an interview at the Republican National Convention in July, Hovde said he’ll focus on issues such as combating inflation and securing the southern border.
Hovde has loaned his campaign $13 million. (Eight million dollars in the first quarter of the year and $5 million in the second, according to Federal Election Commission filings.) Democrats have attacked Hovde as out-of-touch because of his wealth, but he’s pushed back.
“I’ve been successful in life,” Hovde told Spectrum News in July. “I’m proud of my success. I’ve worked hard, and look what I’ve done with my success. No, seriously, look what I’ve done. I’ve given [an] enormous amount.”
Hovde funds relief programs for vulnerable children through a foundation he runs with his brother.
Baldwin said her record in Washington is what makes her the best candidate to represent Wisconsin families.
“I wrote the provision in the Affordable Care Act that allows young people to stay on their parents’ health insurance until they turn 26, and I will never stop fighting until all Americans have the quality, affordable health care they deserve,” Baldwin said at a recent event for Vice President Kamala Harris in Wisconsin. “As your senator, I will always fight to bring down the costs for working families and make sure that multimillionaires like my opponent pay their fair share.”
A Marquette Law School poll released last week shows Baldwin leading Hovde among registered voters by seven points.
“This is when people really start tuning in," Hovde said. "The fact that I am pretty darn close to Senator Baldwin as a new person into this, and she's been a lifelong politician and has had all that negative money spent on me… I feel really good."
Baldwin’s campaign said she’ll work to keep her lead “by doing what she always does.”
“Whether she’s protecting made-in-America manufacturing and jobs, taking on Big Pharma to bring down prices for prescription drugs, or fighting to restore the freedoms we had under Roe, Tammy’s been fighting–and winning–for Wisconsinites,” said Arik Wolk, the rapid response director for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.
After voters cast a ballot in either party’s primary on Tuesday, the focus will turn to November, when Hovde and Baldwin are finally on the same ballot.