WI-03: What type of Democrat can win in rural Wisconsin?

The race to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden in western Wisconsin is on, with three Democratic candidates jostling in a primary that offers voters three distinct paths forward for the general election.

Small-business owner Rebecca Cooke, state Rep. Katrina Shankland and information technology professional Eric Wilson are all running for the Democratic nomination in the 18-county district. Van Orden’s seat is seen by both national and Wisconsin Democrats as a prime flip opportunity to help them win back the U.S. House in November.

Spanning most of western Wisconsin, the district is a mixture of small Democratic-leaning cities — La Crosse, Eau Claire and Stevens Point — and rural Republican communities near the Minnesota border. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report says the race leans Republican, with its Partisan Voter Index indicating the district is slightly more Republican than Democratic.

A vocal critic of President Joe Biden and an ally of former President Donald Trump, Van Orden is a freshman who won his seat in 2022 after longtime Democratic Rep. Ron Kind retired.




https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/04/wisconsin-democrat-republican-election-congressional-district-van-orden/