Wisconsin Businessman Eric Hovde - AP Photo by Tom Lynn
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) – Wisconsin U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin will have her first formal opponent starting next week.
According to the Associated Press, businessman and long-time Republican and former U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde, 59, will once again announce his candidacy for the seat next week. No specific date or location for the announcement was provided in the report.
The report noted that Hovde has been quietly preparing for the announcement over the last few months by hiring staff and setting up campaign events across the state. His announcement will come after a couple of notable Republican officeholders, including Rep. Tom Tiffany and soon-to-be former Rep. Mike Gallagher, opted against running for the seat last fall.
Former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke has also been rumored to still be in the mix to run against Baldwin but has not formally announced his intention to enter the race. Hovde last ran for the seat back in 2012 and was defeated in the Republican primary by former Gov. Tommy Thompson, who went on to lose to Tammy Baldwin in the general election by 5 percentage points.
According to the latest Marquette Law poll, just 7% of respondents viewed Hovde favorably and 9% viewed him unfavorably, while the poll found 18% of respondents viewed David Clarke favorably and another 17% viewed him unfavorably.
The Marquette Law poll also asked voters about Senator Baldwin, with 42% viewing her favorably and 45% viewing her unfavorably. Baldwin last won reelection in 2018 when she defeated Republican challenger Leah Vukmir by 11 percentage points or roughly 300,000 votes.
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