Source: Politics<\/p>\n
The wave of populist energy propelling progressive Democrats to primary wins across the country reduced Wednesday morning to a ripple, just pushing Abdul El-Sayed to a narrow victory<\/a> over his more moderate opponent, Rep. Haley Stevens.<\/p>\n Francesca Hong will try to keep the progressive momentum alive in another swing-state test in Wisconsin next week. <\/p>\n But if Hong, the democratic socialist frontrunner to claim her party\u2019s gubernatorial nomination, wins her primary, she\u2019s already recognizing the need to unite a broader coalition to win in November.<\/p>\n \u201cWe absolutely need every single vote, and we\u2019ll be fighting to earn every single vote,\u201d Hong said in an exclusive interview with POLITICO on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve talked to moderates and independents, Republicans, folks who don\u2019t have a political home right now, and they have a lot of concerns about what’s going on in the state. They also have concerns about things I’ve said in the past,\u201d she added. \u201cBut what we\u2019re focusing on is how to come together to actually deliver for Wisconsinites, and that\u2019s going to be electing Democrats down and up the ballot this cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n Hong, a state Assembly member and former restaurant owner, this week faced criticism from across the political spectrum about a slew of old social media posts espousing far-left views, from declarations to abolish the police<\/a> to a call to \u201ccancel Thanksgiving.\u201d<\/a> And El-Sayed\u2019s knife-edge win right next door is reigniting concerns among some Democrats that a battleground may not be ready for such a lefty leader.<\/p>\n Hong appears to be moderating on \u2014 or at least adding context to \u2014 some of her more controversial positions. She has walked back her stance on police abolition while emphasizing the need to better tackle the underlying causes of crime. She told POLITICO many of her old posts were \u201cjokes,\u201d including the one about Thanksgiving, which she said is actually her favorite holiday.<\/p>\n Still, Hong isn\u2019t giving up her democratic socialist bonafides.<\/p>\n \u201cThe vision that we have for Wisconsin is one that my local DSA chapter shares,\u201d she said, adding that \u201cwe\u2019re fighting to make sure that we’re building the diverse coalition that we need to make sure that we win this for Wisconsinites in November.\u201d<\/p>\n Hong has notched endorsements from several national progressives, including Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who rallied alongside her and the progressive podcaster Hasan Piker last weekend.<\/p>\n But she hasn\u2019t been endorsed by the country\u2019s two most prominent democratic socialists and standardbearers of the progressive movement: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). Hong told POLITICO she has not spoken to either and attributed their lack of endorsement to their focus on federal races \u2014 though Sanders endorsed Troy Jackson in the Vermont governor\u2019s race before he lost and became the Senate nominee, and both endorsed New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani last year.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have been focusing on winning a Democratic primary and staying above the drama,\u201d Hong said.<\/p>\n Despite a major fundraising disadvantage, Hong has emerged as an unlikely frontrunner. She has led in the polls for months and became the all-but-presumed nominee after her main opponents, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes<\/a> and Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez<\/a>, both dropped out amid simmering scandals that embroiled their campaigns. Hong\u2019s chief primary opponent next week is Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who dropped out of the race then jumped back in last month and has the endorsement of<\/a> the state\u2019s current Gov. Tony Evers, a moderate Democrat. Whoever wins on Tuesday will face off against the President Donald Trump-endorsed GOP Rep. Tom Tiffany.<\/p>\n Hong believes her lead is due to a grassroots campaign that has excited Democratic primary voters in Wisconsin. \u201cFree child care, fully funding our schools, taxing the billionaires and a moratorium on AI data centers is what the majority of Wisconsinites have been telling us that they want, and we are the campaign that is listening,\u201d she said in the interview.<\/p>\n The Crowley campaign is pointing to the Michigan results as a sign that they can still catch Hong. \u201cThere is still a long way to go in this race,\u201d Crowley spokesperson Eddie Vale said. \u201cIf you can’t handle an easy CNN interview about Thanksgiving how can you possibly face the full wrath of the Republican attack machine?\u201d<\/p>\n To beat Tiffany in the general, Hong would likely need to pick up support from more moderate Democrats and independents \u2014 all while dodging a deluge of Republican attacks digging up her old comments and seeking to paint her as \u201cwoke.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll Francesca Hong has to offer Wisconsin is bigger government, a plan to make Wisconsin the highest-taxed state in the nation, and a record of calling to abolish the police and prisons,\u201d Tiffany said in a statement to POLITICO.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are trying to get a head start on labeling her ahead of the primary because they don’t see the result changing,\u201d said Winnebago County Executive Gordon Hintz, who was minority leader in the state Assembly when Hong was first elected.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a very big discussion going on in Wisconsin, much as there was in Michigan, about whether a very progressive candidate can prevail in the primary and in the general election,\u201d said John Nichols, a Madison native who wrote an anti-capitalist manifesto with Sanders. \u201cIt goes to a lot of questions about what’s been said in the past and how much people care.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked if she planned to change her messaging strategy ahead of the primary, Hong flipped the question back to Tiffany. \u201cWhen it comes to tailoring messaging, it’s important to recognize that what we have to offer are actual solutions, and what Tom Tiffany is bringing are clearly more Trump tariffs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Tiffany, in his statement, hit back. \u201cWhile she focuses on promoting socialism, defending inflammatory statements, and campaigning alongside terrorist sympathizers, I’ll remain focused on ending the 400-year property tax hike, rooting out fraud, bringing good-paying jobs back to Wisconsin, and making life more affordable after eight years under a Democrat governor,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Like this content? 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