In their only debate, the two 2024 major party candidates for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin — Democratic incumbent Tammy Baldwin and her Republican challenger Eric Hovde — squared off in a high-stakes meeting just weeks ahead of the Nov. 5 election, and UW-La Crosse political science professor Anthony Chergosky offered analysis.

Anthony Chergosky
Professor, UW-La Crosse Department of Political Science and Public Administration

• Chergosky viewed the U.S. Senate debate and noted the fiery nature of it, especially when Hovde repeatedly brought up Baldwin’s partner and she pointed to his second home and business in California.
• Chergosky: “This was an example of the candidates being fired up. I’m not sure that there was an obvious winner on either side, but what we have seen is that this campaign has heated up. There are elections prognosticators that are saying this is a very close race, that this race has tightened, and we saw that in the intensity that the campaigns that the candidates brought to the table. As to private lives, we saw Tammy Baldwin get animated and angry when Eric Hovde brought up her partner and alleged conflicts of interest surrounding her work and her partner’s work, her work in the Senate and what her partner does as a wealth advisor. Meanwhile, Eric Hovde got caught up talking about his role in California, his role as a banker and how the Baldwin team has made that a relentless and consistent element of this campaign.”
• While the Marquette Law School Poll released Oct. 2 showed Baldwin being 7 points ahead of Hovde, other polls say the race is a toss-up. Chergosky said as a result, Republicans are pouring money into more advertising in Wisconsin.
• Chergosky: “Wisconsin has been a bit of an afterthought, at least until recently. Now we are seeing more money come into the Wisconsin Senate race because the map is narrowing. Democrats sense that the Montana Senate race is going not in their direction. Meanwhile, Republicans are concerned by how their candidates in Nevada and Arizona are faring. So the map is narrowing the range of competitive Senate races is narrowing, and that has brought new focus on this.”

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