Saturday, July 11: Crowley drops out, Brennan makes his case for quieter politics, Northwoods Republicans vie to replace Tiffany and Milwaukee officials clash with ICE
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“I’ve said all along that the next governor’s job description is simple: make this state affordable, make sure care shows up for families before a crisis hits, and build real opportunity that runs from the classroom to a good-paying job”
– Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, as he dropped out of Democratic gubernatorial primary and endorsed Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley announced Wednesday that he is dropping his bid for Wisconsin governor. (Photo by Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner)
Campaigns & Elections
The field in the Democratic primary for governor narrowed this week when Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley dropped out of the race Wednesday, saying “it has become clear” he won’t be governor. Baylor Spears covers Crowley’s exit from the race, and his Thursday endorsement of Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez.
Continuing the Examiner’s series of profiles on all the candidates in the Democratic primary, Deputy Editor Erik Gunn hit the trail with former Department of Administration Secretary Joel Brennan, who argues that what he lacks in name recognition he makes up for with connections to other parts of government, a knowledge of how to get things done and a friendlier temperament than is usual in the country’s modern politics.
After a series of denials and delays, President Donald Trump announced this week he’d approved sending $22.6 million in FEMA assistance to help a number of Wisconsin counties that were hit by last year’s extreme floods, Isiah Holmes reports. Despite repeated attempts from Gov. Tony Evers and Democratic officials to get the money for the state, Trump said on social media that U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the presumptive Republican nominee for governor, convinced him to send the funds.
The four Republicans vying to replace Tiffany in Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District seat met Tuesday for a debate. Spears covers the candidates’ efforts to embrace, or distance themselves, from Trump.
Vice President J.D. Vance held an event in Milwaukee this week, appearing on stage with Tiffany and U.S. Reps. Bryan Steil and Derrick Van Orden. In a commentary, Editor-in-Chief Ruth Conniff writes that Vance and his Wisconsin Republican allies’ focus on fraud could backfire and put voters’ focus on the destruction and graft the Trump administration has wrought in Wisconsin and across the country.
In a 5-2 decision on Tuesday, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that a group of election denial activists don’t have the right to obtain records denoting when people under guardianship have been declared incompetent to vote by a judge. Henry Redman covers the decision.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission opened an investigation and reprimanded the city of Green Bay clerk over the city sending duplicate absentee ballots to hundreds of voters for the August primary and in the spring election in April. Redman reports on the meeting.
Immigration
A group of Milwaukee leaders held a press conference Thursday to denounce Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s recent surge in activity across the city and southern Wisconsin. Isiah Holmes reports on the event, where Mayor Cavalier Johnson, U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore and others criticized the fear, distrust and chaos that ICE has incited. On Friday, the Justice Department rejected Milwaukee’s attempts to prohibit immigration agents from wearing masks in a letter to Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and City Attorney Evan Goyke. The letter rebuked Johnson and demanded assurances that the city will not try to enforce the ordinance, Holmes reports.
Holmes was also at the federal courthouse in Milwaukee Wednesday, where former Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan was sentenced for helping an undocumented immigrant evade federal authorities last year. Dugan avoided prison time, but will have to pay a $5,000 fine.
Prisons
A consulting firm that the state hired to write a report on the issues facing Wisconsin’s prison system has now been hired to implement the recommendations within the report. Criminal Justice Project Fellow Andrew Kennard reports on the reform efforts and why advocates for incarcerated people remain skeptical.
Energy
Frustration with rising energy bills, increasing skepticism about investor-owned utilities, anxiety over the growth of data centers and fears about the rising cost of living led Milwaukee city officials last month to hold a meeting aimed at kickstarting debate about municipalization — the process of a local government taking over utility services. Redman reports on that process and looks at the examples of Boulder, Colorado and Ann Arbor, Michigan, communities that have already tried to take the same step.
PLUS:
More from Washington:
Medicaid and the Road Ahead : Spending Cuts, Work Requirements and What's Next for States, Providers and Families
July 23, 2026 at 11 a.m. CST
States Newsroom journalists and health policy experts will hold a virtual event to discuss changes to Medicaid and how federal funding cuts, work requirements and state policy are affecting healthcare in the U.S.
ICYMI
Joel Brennan listens as Rosemary Verheyen of Shebogyan tells him about her concerns at the Sheboygan County Dairy Breakfast on June 20, 2026. (Photo by Erik Gunn/Wisconsin Examiner)
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