Crowley reenters race after Rodriguez exit
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers endorsed Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley in the state’s Democratic gubernatorial primary on Saturday, a day after the race was shaken up by the departure of another candidate and weeks ahead of the primary election.
At a formal event Saturday, according to remarks provided to the Associated Press ahead of their delivery, Crowley planned to say that Evers’ decision to back him “reflects his confidence that I have the experience, the judgment, and the record to build the coalition we need, defeat Tom Tiffany, and lead effectively from the very first day in office.”
Crowley, 40, who would be the state’s first Black governor if elected, is reemerging into a competitive primary that was turned on its head Friday with the departure of Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez. Rodriguez said she was abandoning her campaign after discovering her campaign had hundreds of thousands of dollars less on hand than expected. She earlier in the week fired her campaign manager amid the finance problems.
Crowley had shuttered his own bid two weeks ago to back Rodriguez. Now, he is returning to a contest that also includes Democratic socialist Francesca Hong; former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes; state Sen. Kelda Roys; and Joel Brennan, a former top aide to Evers.
The eventual Democratic nominee will face the winner of the Republican primary, where President Donald Trump has endorsed U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, as MSI previously reported.