Dear friends across Wisconsin,

We’ve known all along that November’s elections could be incredibly close. We’ve planned for exactly that scenario. So, the tighter-than-tight polling is nerve-wracking, it’s not a surprise—and we’re ready for a battle that will come down to a couple of votes per ward in every corner of the state.

If you’ve turned on a screen anywhere in Wisconsin in the last month, you’re probably seen the ads. They’re reaching for their usual bag of tricks. The GOP is trying to distract, demonize, and divide. They’re trying to provoke fear and polarization.

Why are they doing this? Because they know that most Wisconsin families want a Governor who does the right thing and a Senator who sticks up for working families—and they know the Republican candidates don’t meet that basic test.

Tim Michels represents a radical extreme—funding groups that are pushing to ban not just abortion, but contraception. Ron Johnson has looted the Treasury to hand out tax cuts to his wealthiest donors and himself—and wants to put Social Security and Medicare on the chopping block. It’s hard to imagine two politicians more out of touch. And you can tell from their campaigns that the GOP is terrified that voters will notice.

How do we respond to this moment? By pointing out why the Republicans are doing what they’re doing. Yes, we’ll debunk their lies, and even more yes, we’ll counterpunch—and on top of that, we’ll connect the dots about why the GOP wants Wisconsinites afraid and alone. It’s when we unite, no matter where we live or what we look like, that we have the power to defend the middle class against those at the very top and the extreme MAGA right who want a Wisconsin, and an America, that serves only the few.

Look back. 53 days ago, Tim Michels and Rebecca Kleefisch were neck and neck in the GOP primary and there were seven Democratic Senate candidates. The PACT Act for veterans’ health, the CHIPS act to build semiconductors in the US, the Inflation Reduction Act—all of these were bills, not U.S. laws. Student debt relief was an idea, not a reality.

Now look forward. There are 53 days to go. So much will happen—things nobody can possibly predict. If anyone tells you they know what’s going to happen, see if they’ll bet money on it.

But we know this: our values are Wisconsin’s values. Our candidates, up and down the ballot, are fighting for the spirit of a state that has progress in its spiritual DNA. And our work to elect those candidates, and build a state that works for all, makes a difference.

Sure, read the polls. Sure, watch the ads. But no matter what, focus on doing the work. Let’s get the vote out, let’s protect the vote, let’s recruit everyone we know to help—and let’s win.

In solidarity,

Ben

P.S. History will be made on November 8. And then, just six months, later, it will be April 4—another election that will shape the future of Wisconsin. Trump’s dangerous hack Dan Kelly has now announced his campaign for re-election to the state Supreme Court. We have two great candidates running against him, and I hope you’ll welcome them both all over the state; we are of course neutral in their primary, but will be supporting one of them in the general election against Dan Kelly. And if you or anyone you know might want to run for local office this spring, now is the time to talk to your county party chair and start building your kitchen cabinet. We succeed when we think about every race in every place. Let’s sprint through the November 8 finish line—and then pick ourselves back up and get ready for next April.

On Tuesday, Gov. Evers announced an additional $25 million investment in his Main Street Bounceback Program, which, to date, has helped more than 6,200 Wisconsin small businesses and nonprofits open their doors or expand in our state.

Gov. Evers is focused on doing the right thing for Wisconsin by supporting our local communities and main streets. Small businesses in all 72 counties have benefitted from Gov. Evers’ Main Street Bounceback program, creating jobs, supporting local entrepreneurs, revitalizing downtown districts from Beloit to Superior. To learn (and share) more about what Governor Evers has done in your county, click on the map on this page!

Last weekend, Republican candidate for governor Tim Michels and Attorney General candidate Eric Toney joined the disgraced election “investigator” Michael Gableman at a GOP fundraising dinner. Like Gableman, Tim Michels and Eric Toney seek to threaten the future of democracy in Wisconsin. Unlike Gableman, they are candidates for statewide office.

Michels has said that illegally decertifying the 2020 presidential election will be “on the table” and will not commit to certifying Wisconsin’s vote for president in 2024 if he becomes governor and Trump loses. Toney has been endorsed by Gableman and acted on recommendations from Gableman’s widely discredited report, calling for the removal of five members of Wisconsin’s bipartisan election commission—something that is impossible under the law and represents a dangerous corruption of our election oversight systems.

Toney and Michels’ appearance on the campaign trail with Wisconsin’s leading election conspiracy theorist, a man who wasted over $1 million taxpayer dollars on a sham investigation and suggested the legislature should consider illegally decertifying President Biden’s victory in our state, tells Wisconsin voters all they need to know about where the GOP’s priorities lie. You can see a video of an interchange at the event here. Election deniers should not be choosing the people who oversee our elections—period.

Today, WisDems joined Rep. Kristina Shelton, Social Security recipients Kim Javns and Karen Hayward, and Women’s Rights Green Bay Co-Organizer Adrianna Pokela to condemn Ron Johnson and Tim Michels for aligning with Ron DeSantis and his radical policies.

Ahead of a Sunday campaign rally in which Connecticut-based politician Tim Michels and Florida devotees Ron Johnson and Ron DeSantis will converge on Green Bay to spread their divisive agenda, speakers called out Michels’ attempts to bring DeSantis’ radical policies to Wisconsin and Johnson’s self-serving agenda.

Not that anyone will be around to listen to Michels, Johnson, and DeSantis – leave it to the out-of-state Republican candidates to pursue policies that leave Wisconsinites behind while holding a campaign rally minutes before a Packers game.

This week, Wisconsinites were reminded of Ron Johnson’s extremist, out-of-touch anti-abortion record after Senator Lindsey Graham proposed a new federal 15-week abortion ban.

Since 2013, Johnson has co-sponsored every version of Graham’s abortion ban introduced in the Senate. On top of that, he celebrated when the conservative majority on the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade this summer, calling the decision a victory despite it criminalizing nearly all abortions in Wisconsin. Whatever he might be saying now, his record is crystal clear: Ron Johnson supports abortion bans, here in Wisconsin and nationwide.

Read more about Johnson’s push to ban abortion here.

Yesterday, a coalition of Wisconsin law enforcement officers from across the state endorsed Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes for the U.S. Senate. Wisconsin law enforcement officers know that they can trust Lt. Gov. Barnes to support them and provide resources to ensure they can keep communities safe.

Lt. Gov. Barnes has worked to keep Wisconsin communities safe both in the legislature and as lieutenant governor. The Evers-Barnes administration boosted funding for violence prevention efforts and criminal justice initiatives and Lt. Gov. Barnes has prioritized public safety throughout his career. Dishonest Republican attacks are an attempt to distract from the GOP’s own record—like Ron Johnson’s vote against the American Rescue Plan, which provided critical public safety funds to communities throughout Wisconsin.