[Update] Wisconsin Dems react as Sarah Rodriguez ends bid for governor after campaign finance scandal
Rodriguez suspended her gubernatorial campaign Friday, citing serious financial mismanagement that left her campaign unable to pay for a scheduled $1 million ad buy.
Update: At 5:48 p.m. CT on Friday, WMTV’s chief political reporter Vanessa Kjeldsen reported Milwaukee County Commissioner David Crowley will rejoin the governor’s race. He is expected to make the official announcement at the 3rd St. Market Hall on Saturday July 18 at 11 a.m.
Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Sarah Rodriguez (D) ended her bid for governor on Friday, sending a shockwave through the heavily contested primary.
Rodriguez said the fallout from her campaign finance scandal factored into her decision.
“As we have continued to dig into our financial reports, it has become clear that there are issues that would be an ongoing distraction — not just for this campaign, but for the primary and for Wisconsin,” Rodriguez said in a video posted on X. “This race is too important to Wisconsin to let that happen.”
Last Sunday, Rodriguez fired her campaign manager after discovering “serious mismanagement and inaccuracies in campaign finance filings she prepared”. The campaign announced a $1 million ad buy earlier this month that it did not have enough money to cover. Rodriguez said she began asking questions when the ads didn’t begin airing when they were scheduled on July 7.
“By Wednesday, I also received a call from my media team to flag that the media invoice had not been paid,” Rodriguez said on Monday. “By Thursday afternoon, I saw that the total cash was far lower than I had expected. I will generally say that there were hundreds of thousands of dollars less than I thought.”
As of Thursday, Rodriguez’s campaign reported having just $34,990 cash on hand despite raising $561,817 in the first half of 2026.
David Crowley expected to reup his campaign
With the primary election on Aug. 11, moderate Democrats are scrambling to find a path forward. Multiple reports suggest that Democrats are urging Milwaukee County Commissioner David Crowley to jump back in the race. Crowley ended his campaign on July 8 and endorsed Rodriguez, who reportedly kept her campaign’s financial troubles from him before the endorsement. The Recombobulation Area’s Dan Shafer confirmed that Gov. Tony Evers (D), who previously said he would not be involved in the primary election, is considering endorsing Crowley if he decides to restart his campaign.
WTMJ radio host John Mercure reported that Crowley will re-launch his campaign Saturday.
Missy Hughes, the former CEO of WEDC who dropped out of the race in June and endorsed Rodriguez, is also calling for Crowley to rejoin the primary.
Barnes, Hong and Roys react
The remaining candidates each spoke with WISN 12 on Friday. Evers’ former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes was live on the air when Rodriguez made her announcement.
State Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison), considered the most progressive candidate in the race, said Evers is free to endorse whoever he wants.
State Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison) urged Crowley to “make the right choice for the party,” implying he should stay out of the race.
Upfront reported that some Wisconsin Democrats privately say Hong can’t win a statewide race. Hong has been confronted about past social media posts where she called for defunding and abolishing the police. During a recent interview with WTMJ, she backtracked the comments.
“I do not believe that police funding should go away, and I do not think that the police can be abolished,” Hong said.
Hong has lead the field in three polls dating back to February. Barnes trailed her by two percentage points in a survey released by Wedgewood Polls on July 7. The two progressives also lead the field in fundraising figures. Barnes reported raising $841,000 in the first six months of 2026 while Hong took home $709,000.
WISN 12 is hosting a primary debate between the four remaining candidates on July 28.
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