COMEBACK CROWLEY: Milwaukee County Executive wins Wisconsin's Democratic primary in a stunner
It was a discombobulating Election Night to cap a discombobulating primary, but with the votes now counted, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley is going to be the Democratic nominee.
The Recombobulation Area is a 19-time 21-TIME! Milwaukee Press Club award-winning opinion column and online publication founded by Milwaukee journalist Dan Shafer.
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley has completed a remarkable comeback to win the Democratic primary in the race for governor.
After an especially chaotic evening of election results, Crowley leads State Rep. Francesca Hong by a less than 1% margin. The results are unofficial, but the race has been called by Decision Desk HQ, VoteHub, CBS 58 and others.
Marquette University researcher John Johnson, who joined The Recombobulation Area as part of an Election Night livestream, also called the race for Crowley.
“Crowley’s success in consolidating support while Hong’s campaign struggled in the national spotlight is a striking reminder that campaigns DO matter,” he said. “In the end, Hong’s vote share just about matched her support as measured by the polls in the closing weeks of the race, but Crowley managed to consolidate the opposition, all in just one month since reentering the race.”
Crowley wins with a plurality of votes, at just under 40%, ahead of Hong by mere decimal points. State Sen. Kelda Roys came in third with about 7.5%, followed by Joel Brennan, the former Department of Administration secretary, with about 4.7%. Candidates who dropped out early but still received votes included Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, who received about 4.1%, former lieutenant governor Mandela Barnes a few hundred votes less, and former WEDC CEO Missy Hughes, with less than 1%.
In a statement released at 2:30 a.m., Crowley’s campaign manager, Garren Randolph, declared victory, saying:
“David Crowley is grateful to Wisconsin voters, the volunteers who powered this campaign, and everyone who stepped forward to participate in this primary.
“To Francesca, Kelda, Joel, and every candidate who shared their vision for Wisconsin, thank you. They challenged all of us to think bigger about what our state can become.
“From day one, this campaign has been about what comes next for Wisconsin: making life more affordable, strengthening our schools, creating good-paying jobs, and making sure opportunity reaches every corner of our state.
“Now, David is focused on bringing people together, earning the support of Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and anyone who believes Wisconsin is at its best when we work together and deliver results.
“The choice in November has always been clear. We can move Wisconsin forward with leadership focused on solving problems, or we can bring the division and extremism of Tom Tiffany and Donald Trump to Wisconsin.
“David is ready to get back to work, build a broad coalition, and win in November.”
The victory caps a stunning turnaround for a candidate who dropped out of the race on July 8. He endorsed Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez the following day, but Rodriguez’s campaign had problems of its own, announcing on July 12 that they were firing their campaign manager over a major campaign finance crisis, resulting in Rodriguez dropping out of the race on July 17.
Crowley officially rejoined the race in an event on July 18 at 3rd Street Market Hall in Milwaukee. The Recombobulation Area was there for the event.
When he re-launched his campaign, he did so with the endorsement of Gov. Tony Evers, who spent the final stretch of the campaign on the road with Crowley. On the eve of the election, Crowley and Evers held a rally at The Cooperage in Milwaukee.
“I know in my heart of hearts that David Crowley is the best chance we have of beating Tom Tiffany,” Evers said in his remarks.
See a thread here with our live coverage from the event.
There were a whole lot of twists and turns as Election Night unfolded, and we were there for you through all of it, here at The Recombobulation Area. Kate Duffy of Motherhood for Good and Dr. Kristin Lyerly joined for an extended livestream reacting to the results — a stream that lasted more than three hours.
Watch the full livestream here.
That was actually the second livestream we had this evening, the first running for roughly 35 minutes, beginning at 9 p.m., also joined by John Johnson.
Watch the incredible 3+ hour livestream here.
Stick with us for much more coverage of these stunning results in the days to come, here at The Recombobulation Area.
Dan Shafer is an independent journalist from Milwaukee who writes and publishes The Recombobulation Area. He worked with Civic Media from 2024 to 2026. He’s written for The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Heartland Signal, Belt Magazine, WisPolitics, and Milwaukee Record. He previously worked at Seattle Magazine, Seattle Business Magazine, the Milwaukee Business Journal, Milwaukee Magazine, and BizTimes Milwaukee. He’s won 24 Milwaukee Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards. He’s on Twitter at @DanRShafer.
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