In upset, moderate David Crowley defeats democratic socialist Francesca Hong in Wisconsin gubernatorial primary

Moderate Democrat David Crowley will win his party’s primary for Wisconsin governor, CBS News projects, in a narrow, upset victory over Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist who was widely viewed as a frontrunner in the race.

Crowley will face GOP Rep. Tom Tiffany on the ballot in November. 

Crowley overcame significant headwinds, especially after he briefly suspended his campaign in July. But he also had the backing of two-term Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Hong had suffered from negative press as old social media posts had come to light. 

Crowley’s win reversed the recent trend of progressive wins in Democratic primaries in Michigan, New York and Colorado.

The governor’s mansion in Wisconsin is one of the biggest prizes for both parties, especially with Evers’ decision not to run for reelection. President Trump won by less than 1 point in 2024 and Wisconsin is one of only two states with one Democratic senator and one Republican senator. (In Maine, independent Sen. Angus King caucuses with Democrats, while the state’s other senator is GOP Sen. Susan Collins.) 

Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, who lost the 2022 Senate race against Sen. Ron Johnson by one point, had thrown his hat in the ring, as well as Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and Francesca Hong, a state lawmaker and former chef. 

But the race started to take a completely different shape in July, when Crowley dropped his bid and threw his support behind Rodriguez, who was considered more of an establishment candidate. But Rodriguez dropped out days later after discovering her campaign had less money in the bank than previously believed. 

Although Barnes had pulled out a surprise victory in the 2022 Senate primary as a progressive candidate and had previously won statewide in 2018, becoming the state’s first Black lieutenant governor, Hong, who was to his left, had risen to be the frontrunner. 

With Wisconsin voters facing those hard-left choices on the ballot, Crowley then announced he would return to the campaign trail as a centrist Democrat. Crowley said in a debate last month that he initially made the decision to drop out based on data, but “we were going off false data,” prompting him to return to the race.

Barnes then announced on July 30 — less than two weeks before the primary — that he would be dropping his bid, saying, “it’s becoming very clear who the Democratic nominee is going to be,” pointing to Hong. Barnes’ announcement came as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was investigating allegations that he was taking advantage of his role in the party to have sexual encounters with young adult women. Barnes has not addressed the allegations and has not been accused of any crimes.

That left the contest mainly between Crowley and Hong, thrusting the race even more into the national spotlight. Hong’s old social media posts from 2019 to 2021 have  come to light: She called for defunding the police and abolishing ICE and the U.S. Senate, disparaged that there were “too many old white people who didn’t think we spoke English” at a rural location of Wisconsin favored chain Culver’s and called to “cancel Thanksgiving.” Hong has walked back the abolition of the Senate, and told Politico last week that Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday.