MADISON, Wis. — Earlier this month, News 8000 highlighted the groundswell of enthusiasm coming from Democrats in western Wisconsin to flip the third district. Between thousands of people attending the Eau Claire Harris-Walz rally and the thousands of votes cast in the primary, it’s clear Democrats in western Wisconsin are motivated to show up and support their candidates. Western Wisconsin Democrats, including rural voters, students, and local leaders, are uniting behind Rebecca Cooke’s campaign to turn Wisconsin’s third congressional district blue this fall. 

News 8000: Optimism high for Democratic flip in Wisconsin’s third district this fall
By: Ken Kosirowski

Wisconsin’s delegation at the Democratic National Convention is serving up optimism for one of the state’s congressional districts to turn blue this fall. 

Governor Evers and western Wisconsin Dems are all confident Eau Claire’s Rebecca Cooke will flip the third district, and it starts with the national spotlight Kamala Harris and Tim Walz gave Eau Claire for their second rally as a duo.

“12,000 people showed up for the Eau Claire rally and in my hometown, you don’t see that kind of turnout for a political rally,” Wisconsin Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski said. “Maybe for Country Jam or Rock Fest, but not for a political rally. And I think that shows the enthusiasm for the top of the ticket.”

Some of their confidence comes from their belief most voters just don’t like congressman Derrick Van Orden. 2nd District Congressman Mark Pocan has frequently called Van Orden an “embarrassment” due to well publicized outbursts since taking office. Pocan says national Democratic polling says Van Orden is underperforming with general Republicans.

They see Cooke’s dairy farmer and waitress background as an asset. Third district chair William Garcia says Cooke’s strength is talking one on one with voters because she knows their struggles.

“Her story is so relatable to voters and then she’s talking about the exact same issues that we’re talking about with Kamala Harris— making life just a little easier with better access to health care, lower prescription drug costs,” Garcia said. “And with six UW campuses in the district, a younger candidate who calls for working across the aisle is hitting home with third district students.”

“We know how to have conversations with people across the aisle because we have to every day,” said student Josefine Jaynes, who ran for 96th Assembly District in 2020 as a Democrat. “We don’t get to live in a little bubble like in cities. We don’t get to just be around like-minded people all the time. You learn in church basements and in the grocery store how to talk to your neighbors.”

Dems say the numbers back that up. 61,000 people voted in the third district primary two years ago. This year, that was up to 83,000.

“Just that is almost double the number that Brad Pfaff lost to Van Orden,” Garcia said.

The other numbers that matter are the ones with a dollar sign in front of them. Last election, the national Democrats pulled money from Brad Pfaff’s campaign late in the race. With Wisconsin as such a focal point this summer, Garcia says there’s no way that history repeats itself.

“They are full-on going to come to bat this time. They’ve already promised more money in ad buys than they did two years ago, and I think it’s largely because they realized the mistake they made. They pulled money because they were expecting a red wave across the country— one that didn’t happen. But they pulled money and sent it out to protect seats that lost by a whole lot more than what Brad Pfaff lost by. They’re looking at that seat, they know they screwed up two years ago, and they’re going to make it up to us this time.”

It all has Democrats believing Cooke will serve up a win in November.

Congressman Pocan said because Wisconsin has such a late partisan primary, that party money from outside the state is crucial to helping Cooke muster resources against an incumbent.