Tipsheet

David Crowley Returns to WI Governor's Race As Democrats Continue to Panic

Amy Curtis
Amy Curtis  |  July 18, 2026 11:15 AM

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley has announced he will re-enter the Wisconsin governor's race and that Governor Tony Evers will endorse Crowley for the upcoming August 11 primary.

Crowley, who suspended his campaign last week, was tapped to get back into the race after current Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez suspended her campaign amid serious financial issues that had gone unnoticed until earlier this week. Rodriguez fired her campaign manager on Monday and dropped out of the race yesterday.

Rodriguez's departure sent the Wisconsin Democrats (WisDems) into full-blown panic mode, and yesterday there was serious talk about recruiting Crowley to try to take out Francesca Hong, the Democratic Socialist frontrunner on the Democratic side of the aisle.

Democrats believe Hong cannot win the general election.

This sure looks like another desperate attempt by Democrats to undermine the will of their voters in order to win an election, doesn't it?

Here's more:

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley will officially re-enter the governor’s race at a rally in downtown Milwaukee Saturday morning, capping a wild week that saw a campaign finance scandal end Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez’s run and a frantic dash to stop socialist Francesca Hong from running away with the party’s nomination.

Crowley had dropped out of the race last week and endorsed Rodriguez, calling her the strongest candidate in the field and urging other candidates to follow his lead and consolidate votes behind a single candidate who could stop Hong’s socialist insurgency.

Democratic Party officials are concerned that Hong will lose the general election to Republican Tom Tiffany, but also that her winning the primary would lead to a takeover of the party itself by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The DSA has racked up a series of primary wins in New York and Colorado and a DSA candidate leading a Democratic ticket in a swing state like Wisconsin would be the party’s biggest victory this year.

Evers will reportedly make an endorsement of Crowley this afternoon. This has to be a sore spot for both Sara Rodriguez and Mandela Barnes, both of whom served under Evers as Lt. Gov. during his time in office.

Crowley will relaunch his campaign at an 11 AM event in Milwaukee.

This is a new pattern emerging in the Democratic Party, that of swapping out a candidate at the last minute.

But they will, it seems, when they think they'll lose.

No one accused them of being smart.

Crowley has an uphill battle, remember. Last December, under his watch, the County let a $450 million contract with UnitedHealthcare expire, leaving county employees, retirees, and their dependents without coverage.

Mandela Barnes is also displeased.

Meanwhile, Tom Tiffany just raised $10 million in campaign donations and is sitting on a healthy amount of cash. The chaos on the Democratic side of the aisle will only help voters see that Tiffany is the best choice in November.