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- Gov. Tony Evers' re-election decision looms over battleground Wisconsin</p>
<p>Adam EdelmanJuly 6, 2025 at 4:15 AM</p>
<p>Wisconsin Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is weighing whether to seek re-election in 2026. (Daniel Boczarski / Getty Images)</p>
<p>In one of the nation's most closely divided battleground states, there's one big question on both parties' minds: Is Gov. Tony Evers going to run for a third term next year?</p>
<p>The answer will have reverberating consequences in Wisconsin, where one of five Democratic-controlled governorships is up for grabs in 2026 in states President Donald Trump won last year.</p>
<p>Evers, 73, has said he would announce whether he'd run again after he reached a budget deal with Republicans, who control both chambers of the Legislature. But with an agreement rapidly signed, sealed and delivered last week, some Wisconsin Democrats are growing impatient for his decision.</p>
<p>"I'd like to see him make a decision, hopefully sooner rather than later, because I do think we've got a lot of elections that we need to be winning and focusing on," Democratic state Sen. Kelda Roys, who ran against Evers in the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary, said last month. "If the governor makes a decision, I hope that's going to be soon."</p>
<p>One dynamic hanging over Evers' decision is the possibility he wouldn't have to deal with a combative Legislature fully controlled by Republicans, as he has throughout his tenure. A landmark 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court decision from a newly installed liberal majority prompted the state's gerrymandered maps to be redrawn, giving Democratic a much more realistic path to taking control of either the state Assembly or Senate in 2026.</p>
<p>"One question he's weighing is, 'Do I try to stay around for one more term and possibly have one, if not both, lower chambers to work with, versus just trying to haggle with Republicans and push the veto pen every single f-----g time," said one Democratic operative in the state who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the race.</p>
<p>Some Democrats also feel that Evers, with the benefit of incumbency, still represents the party's best shot at winning next year's gubernatorial election.</p>
<p>"There's no question that Evers is the most equipped to win next year," said Joe Zepecki, a Milwaukee-based Democratic strategist who finished second in last month's race to be the chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party. "Why would we not want to have an incumbent Democratic governor who is the most popular politician in the state, beloved by the Democratic base. That makes all the sense in the world in what will be a good political environment for Democrats."</p>
<p>But others have warned that Democrats should not continue to rely on septuagenarian candidates and should clear the way for new voices, particularly following their experience with then-President Joe Biden in 2024.</p>
<p>Evers' allies have hit back at that narrative, pointing to recent polling.</p>
<p>One Wisconsin Democratic operative familiar with Evers' thinking, who requested anonymity to speak candidly while Evers' decision-making process is ongoing, added, "That just doesn't match with what we're hearing from Democrats and from the Marquette Poll."</p>
<p>That refers to a Marquette University Law School poll of registered Wisconsin voters released last month showing that Democrats remain widely supportive of Evers running again — even as the general electorate in the purple state remains more split.</p>
<p>The survey found that 83% of Democrats said they supported Evers seeking a third term. That poll also found that 42% of all registered voters said they wanted Evers to run again, compared to 55% who said they did not. That support level, the pollsters noted, is still strong by historical standards. Back in 2016, ahead of Republican Gov. Scott Walker's decision to run for a third term, the same poll found that just 36% of registered voters wanted him to run a third time, compared to 61% who did not. Walker ran again in 2018 and lost to Evers.</p>
<p>Evers' approval ratings in the poll — 48% of voters said they approved of his job performance, compared to 46% who said they didn't — is in line with the levels he's seen in that survey throughout his two terms in office in the swing state.</p>
<p>Waiting in the wings</p>
<p>If Evers ultimately declines to run, there are several Democrats who could seek to replace him, including state Attorney General Josh Kaul, Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson.</p>
<p>But some Wisconsin Democrats expressed concern that an Evers exit could lead to an expensive and divisive primary.</p>
<p>"It would be a big field if he doesn't run. That could get messy," said the Democratic operative familiar with Evers' thinking.</p>
<p>Representatives for the political operations of Kaul, Rodriguez and Crowley didn't respond to questions.</p>
<p>Johnson spokesperson Thad Nation said in an email that "the Mayor has deep respect for that leadership and certainly hopes the Governor will choose to run again," but that "if Governor Evers decides not to seek re-election, Mayor Johnson would be in a strong position to enter the race."</p>
<p>Evers' decision isn't likely to have much bearing on who decides to run for the Republican nomination. Currently, the only declared candidate in the race is Josh Schoemann, the county executive of Washington County, an exurban area northwest of Milwaukee.</p>
<p>Also weighing bids are businessman Eric Hovde, who narrowly lost a 2024 U.S. Senate race to Democrat Tammy Baldwin, and Tim Michels, who lost to Evers in 2022. U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany also hasn't ruled out a campaign.</p>
<p>Strategists in both parties said that Evers' decision to wait until after a budget deal was reached with state lawmakers could present the governor with an opportunity to leave on a high note, or help build his case for a third term.</p>
<p>"Evers got most of what he wanted. He is now in a position to say, 'I've done what I needed to do. I got funding back to UW [the University of Wisconsin system], I got funding for child care, we've saved the kids in Wisconsin.' We've got a kids budget — I think that gives him an out," said Brandon Scholz, a Wisconsin Republican strategist. "He can go out on top."</p>
<p>Evers' allies said delaying his announcement provided him with maximum leverage during budget discussions with Republicans.</p>
<p>"I think it probably did make better his ability to work with Republicans in the Legislature to get to what appears to now be a reasonable budget," Zepecki said.</p>
<p>Responding to questions about whether the governor would be announcing his decision imminently now that the state budget process has wrapped, Evers senior adviser Sam Roecker said only that "the governor has been clear he won't make a decision on 2026 until the budget process concludes."</p>
<p>But some Democrats said the prospects of a friendlier Legislature, Evers' poll numbers and the ability to avoid a fractured primary all pointed in one direction.</p>
<p>"I think he has decided, and I think he will run," Zepecki said. "If I had to bet money today, that's where we are."</p>
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