Wisconsin U.S. Senate candidate Mandela Barnes speaks at a rally Oct. 29, 2022, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

2026-07-30T18:36:59Z

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Mandela Barnes dropped out of Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor on Thursday.

The former lieutenant governor made the announcement in a video posted on his Facebook page as democratic socialist Francesca Hong has garnered strong support from the liberal wing of the party.

Barnes is the third Democrat to withdraw from the race. Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez ended her run amid a campaign finance scandal two weeks ago and former state economic development director Missy Hughes dropped out in June.

After Rodriguez ended her campaign, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley rejoined the race with the endorsement of Gov. Tony Evers.

The primary is Aug. 11. The winner is expected to face U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who faces only nominal opposition in the Republican primary.

In the 2022 race for the U.S. Senate, Barnes was helped when rivals dropped out in the primary to clear the field for him. He ended up losing by fewer than 27,000 votes to Ron Johnson, the Republican incumbent.

The shake-up in the Democratic primary for governor comes after nearly 128,000 voters have returned absentee ballots and it was the third day of in-person early voting.

On Wednesday, a judge refused a lawsuit supported by the Democratic Party seeking to allow voters who have already returned their absentee ballots to cancel them and vote again.

SCOTT BAUER





Bauer is the AP’s Statehouse reporter covering politics and state government in Madison, Wisconsin. He also writes music reviews.















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