logo
Republican county leader Josh Schoemann enters Wisconsin governor's race

Republican county leader Josh Schoemann enters Wisconsin governor's race

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican Josh Schoemann, the top elected official in a suburban Milwaukee county, this week created a committee to run for governor in 2026, making him the first candidate from either major party to get into the race.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has not yet said whether he will seek a third term. Evers has repeatedly said he will announce his intentions after the state budget is passed and signed into law, which typically happens around early July. Asked for a reaction, a spokesperson for Evers referred to a comment from the Wisconsin Democratic Party.
'The Republican primary for governor is going to be a who's who of far-right extremists tripping over themselves to earn Donald Trump's favor — and all Josh Schoemann has going for him is that he's first off the starting line,' said Sarah Abel, executive director of the Wisconsin Democratic Party.
Schoemann, 43, filed to create a campaign committee on Wednesday. He is the executive of Washington County, one of the deepest red counties in Wisconsin, which President Donald Trump won with 67% of the vote in 2024.
Schoemann has never run a statewide race before and is unlikely to be the only Republican candidate in the election that is 19 months away.
Bill Berrien, a Whitefish Bay manufacturing businessman, created a political action committee two weeks ago as he also considers a run. Berrien is a Navy SEAL veteran and CEO of Pindel Global Precision and Liberty Precision in New Berlin.
Others mentioned as potential candidates include U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who represents northern Wisconsin, and two-time losing U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde, a Madison businessman.
Schoemann was elected as county executive in 2020 after previously working six years as county administrator and county manager. He is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom and received an honorable discharge in October 2008 from the Army National Guard, according to his biography on the county website.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

6 in 10 voters view Democrats negatively: WSJ poll
6 in 10 voters view Democrats negatively: WSJ poll

The Hill

time5 minutes ago

  • The Hill

6 in 10 voters view Democrats negatively: WSJ poll

The Democratic Party is viewed negatively by 63 percent of American voters — the lowest approval rating of the party in more than 30 years of The Wall Street Journal's surveys — according to a new poll from the newspaper. The survey found that while voters disapproved of President Trump's handling of a variety of issues, they generally said they trusted Republicans more than Democrats to take care of those issues in Congress. On tariffs, for instance, voters disapproved of Trump's policies by 17 percentage points, but trusted Republican lawmakers more than Democrats on the issue by seven points. Only 8 percent of voters viewed Democrats 'very favorably' in the poll. President Trump himself had an approval rating of 46 percent. The Wall Street Journal poll follows a survey from CNN released Thursday which found that just 28 percent of voters viewed the Democrats favorably. Democrats are confronting widespread voter malaise and perceptions that the party is listless ahead of the 2026 midterms as key parts of the party's national infrastructure have been rocked by infighting. Still, they are seeking to capitalize on Trump's more unpopular policies. They hope the GOP's 'big, beautiful bill,' with tax cuts favoring the wealthy alongside significant cuts to Medicaid and other social services, could galvanize voters. A slight majority — 52 percent — of voters in Friday's Journal poll disapproved of the bill. The ongoing controversy over the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — a flashpoint for MAGA voters that Democrats have sought to exploit — may also come into play as members of Congress head home for the August recess. The Journal's poll found that voters were highly skeptical that the Justice Department had thoroughly investigated the issue, with 65 percent of Democrats and 30 percent of Republicans saying they had 'no confidence' in the department's review. The poll of 1,500 registered voters was conducted between July 16 and July 20 with a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points. It was conducted by Democratic pollster John Anzalone and GOP strategist Tony Fabrizio.

Democratic Texas congressional candidate dragged out, arrested after rant at redistricting hearing, wild video shows
Democratic Texas congressional candidate dragged out, arrested after rant at redistricting hearing, wild video shows

New York Post

time35 minutes ago

  • New York Post

Democratic Texas congressional candidate dragged out, arrested after rant at redistricting hearing, wild video shows

A Democratic congressional candidate was forcibly removed from the Texas State Capitol Thursday and arrested after he filibustered a hearing on redistricting in the Lone Star State. 'It is a shame. It is horrific. For what you have … ' Isaiah Martin shouted as he was dragged out of the House Redistricting Committee meeting in Austin, just before a capitol security official fell on top of the 27-year-old House hopeful. 3 Isaiah Martin is running to represent Texas' 18th Congressional District in the House of Representatives. CBS Austin Advertisement Martin is seeking to replace the late Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas), who died on March 5, as the Texas' 18th Congressional District representative. The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed Martin was arrested and booked into Travis County Jail on charges of criminal trespass, disrupting a meeting or procession and resisting arrest, according to local outlet KVUE. All charges against Martin were dropped Friday, and he was expected to be released from jail, his brother said in a social media post, arguing that the state was trying to make 'an example' out of Isaiah. Advertisement Republican state Rep. Cody Vasut ordered the sergeant-at-arms to remove Martin from the hearing after he went over his allotted two minutes to speak and refused to stop talking — even after his microphone was shut off. It took three men to wrestle Martin out of the room. 'Jesus! Get off of him!' a woman in the crowd demanded after the candidate fell to the ground with the sergeant-at-arms on top of him. 'He tripped,' one of the security members assured the woman. Advertisement 'America will rise up against you!' Martin screamed as he was finally pulled into the hallway, where it appeared he fell, or was taken down, once more. 3 Martin was forcibly removed after he refused to stop speaking at the hearing. Fox News West Texas 3 As he was being dragged out, Martin appeared to trip and fell to the ground. CBS Austin Martin's brother contends that Isaiah was simply using his First Amendment rights and 'willingly walked with the officers out of the building' after his arrest. Advertisement 'He shouldn't have been arrested in the first place,' Martin's brother said. Martin, who previously worked as a staffer for late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), is one of eight Democrats currently running in a special election race for the Houston-area congressional district. He is opposed to Republican-led efforts in Texas to tweak the state's congressional maps further in the GOP's favor. The redistricting proposal may create five new winnable seats for Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store