Brad Pfaff wins Democratic primary for Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District, meets Derrick Van Orden in November
State Sen. Brad Pfaff came out on top of a four-way Democratic primary field early Wednesday in the western Wisconsin race to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Ron Kind.
Pfaff edged Eau Claire small business owner Rebecca Cooke by 8 percentage points and handily defeated former CIA officer Deb McGrath and La Crosse Ald. Mark Neumann to secure the Democratic nomination in what is likely to be the state’s most competitive House race this year.
He will face Donald Trump-endorsed Republican retired Navy SEAL Derrick Van Orden in November.
“I have stood up for western and central Wisconsin my entire life," Pfaff said in a tweet declaring victory. "And I’m certainly not about (to) stop now."
The race for the 3rd Congressional District carries national significance as Democrats fight to maintain their slim majority in the House of Representatives, an effort they are projected to lose. Republicans see the seat as among their best chances to regain control of the chamber during a midterm cycle that is favorable to the GOP.
In fact, the rural Wisconsin district has trended redder in recent years. Kind was one of just seven House Democrats in the country to represent a district that was carried by Trump in 2020 — he narrowly edged Van Orden at the time by fewer than 3 percentage points.
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Pfaff, of Onalaska, was perhaps the most high-profile name in the Democratic primary. He jumped into the race in October of last year and quickly locked in endorsements from Kind and former Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Herb Kohl, both of whom he had worked for before joining the state Senate.
“He knows the district better than anyone,” Kind said of Pfaff at the state Democratic convention in June.
Unlike other races across the state, the Democratic primary was relatively low-profile. Candidates rarely attacked one another, rather focusing their ire on their Republican opponent and making the case that “democracy” will be on the ballot in November, citing things like the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Hours before the polls closed Tuesday, Wisconsin Democrats had scheduled a “unity” news conference with the four candidates for Wednesday to discuss the importance of the general election race.
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Still, the four Democrats in recent months made efforts to stand out and pitch themselves to rural voters who have largely drifted away from the Democratic Party.
“There’s one thing that I know," Pfaff told a crowd of Democrats in June. "It’s the people and the communities of rural Wisconsin. I fought for places like this my entire life.”
McGrath, of Menomonie, had said she was “from a small dairy farm town” and established herself as the only mother in the race. She touted her military and national security background and was an outspoken critic of Van Orden, who attended the Trump rally that preceded the Jan. 6 insurrection. McGrath's father, Al Baldus, represented the 3rd district between 1975 and 1981.
Cooke, the small-business owner, ran what she called a "19 county district tour" campaign and boasted her labor endorsements and support from "John McCain-style" Republicans as evidence she was the “only working-class person running in this race.”
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Now, however, attention turns toward November.
Like McGrath, Pfaff has been critical of Van Orden's presence in D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. He's likely to continue those attacks in the run-up to Nov. 8.
"Make no mistake, this election will be one of the most important of our lifetime," Pfaff said in a statement early Wednesday. "Derrick presents a clear and present danger to democracy and has proven time and time again that he lacks the temperament, character, or the judgment to be in Congress."
Van Orden, for his part, has leaned heavily on his Navy SEAL background and fashioned himself as a political outsider pushing back on the political establishment.
"Here's a fun fact," Van Orden said in his first TV ad of the year, released earlier this month. "Three out of four members of Congress were already professional politicians before they even got to D.C. And then they cash in and become lobbyists."
"That ain't me," he added in the 30-second spot, leaning against a Harley-Davidson.
Van Orden has a significant fundraising advantage in the race. His campaign raised more money than all four Democrats combined, according to federal elections reports filed July 20, bringing in $4.5 million compared with Pfaff's $722,000 and amassing $1.7 million in cash on hand over the same period.
"My opponent Brad Pfaff has never had a job outside of politics and enthusiastically supports President Biden and Pelosi’s radical policies and spending that are destroying America in real time," Van Orden said in a statement.
"Wisconsinites have had enough," Van Orden added. "They want new leadership, someone who is not a career politician and will be a strong leader in these hard times."
With the primary over, Pfaff, who has a war chest of about $180,000, will now be able to tap into money from the Democratic Party.
"Working families and family farmers in the 3rd District deserve a leader, not Twitter tantrums, divisive political attacks, and meltdowns at the public library," Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler said in a statement.
"Brad Pfaff is a leader who will always stand and fight for the people and values that make western Wisconsin great."
Contact Lawrence Andrea at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @lawrencegandrea.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brad Pfaff wins in Wisconsin 3rd Congressional District primary