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Hovde also ran for Senate in 2012, where he lost in the Republican primary to former governor Tommy Thompson.
Jimmie KaskaFeb 15, 2024, 11:59 AM CST
MADISON, Wis. (Civic Media) – Eric Hovde, a former Republican Senate candidate, will announce a run for the U.S. Senate next week, according to his campaign.
Hovde ran and lost in a Republican primary in 2012 to former governor Tommy Thompson. Thompson then lost to Democrat Tammy Baldwin in the 2012 General Election, giving Baldwin her first term in the Senate.
Hovde, a real estate company owner and bank CEO, is the first Republican to announce a run. Congressmen Tom Tiffany and Mike Gallagher had previously announced they wouldn’t be running.
Other prominent Republican candidates could include Scott Mayer, a business owner in Franklin, and David Clarke, the former sheriff of Milwaukee County. So far, four Republicans have announced that they are running,: Kyle Corrigan, Stacey Klein, Rejani Raveendran, and Patrick Schaefer-Wicke. A trio of third-party candidates have also declared for the race.
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin said in a statement that Hovde’s upcoming candidacy will be part of a “messy GOP primary.”
“As California bank owner Eric Hovde tries to navigate an impending messy GOP primary, we look forward to drawing a contrast between his California life and Tammy Baldwin’s work for Wisconsin,” the party said in a statement.
Baldwin, who is wrapping up her second term as Senator, defeated Leah Vukmir by 11 points in the 2018 election and Thompson by 5.5 points in 2012.
