Senator Tammy Baldwin announced her campaign to run for reelection in 2024 months ago. Her campaign is already hitting its midseason stride and they're doing everything right.
The Wisconsin GOP started talking tough and tried to get a "Topple Tammy" movement going. But despite their bluster and tough rhetoric against Tammy, they can't get even one person to run against her. At first, it appeared to be Representative Mike Gallagher, whom both the Republican establishment and big GOP donors were courting.
But a poll done by Public Policy Polling showed Gallagher coming in a distant third place. Ahead of him were "Not sure" and - checks notes - former Milwaukee County Sheriff and wannabe Trump acolyte, David Clarke.
Going into their state convention last weekend, it appeared that the only potential candidates the GOP could muster up was MAGA Representative Tom Tiffany, Clarke, and businessman Eric Hovde. However, Clarke, who got 40% in the PPP poll, didn't bother to even show up at the convention. In a straw poll at the convention, Clarke received only 18% of the votes.
As bad as that seems, keep in mind that the winner of the straw poll, Tiffany, received only 35% of the vote. There is an undeniable lack of enthusiasm for any of them. To make the race to be even more ho hum, those few that expressed any interest in running expressed that they wouldn't make a commitment until at least September.
Everyone knows trying to run against Baldwin is an act of futility, especially since the Dodd decision last year. The party is going to have to do a lot to sweeten the pot enough for anyone to put themselves out there like that.
