Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes today formally launched his campaign for governor, arguing the best way to move the state forward “is to reject the ‘Washington Way’ and get things done the ‘Wisconsin Way.’”
Barnes said in a rollout video that the name of the game under President Donald Trump “has been distraction and chaos to avoid accountability.”
“It isn’t about left or right. It’s not about who can yell the loudest,” he said in the video. “It’s about whether people can afford to live in the state they call home.”
Barnes, 39, is the most high-profile Dem to jump into the race so far after serving one term as Tony Evers’ lieutenant governor
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The former state lawmaker ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022, losing to U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, by 26,718 votes. That result has made Barnes’ candidacy a polarizing prospect in Dem circles.
Backers have focused on the $41 million that Barnes raised, topping the $36 million that Johnson pulled in, according to Open Secrets. They also have noted how close the race was even as Open Secrets found outside groups spent $78 million backing Johnson to the more than $50 million they put behind Barnes’ campaign.
Detractors, though, have pointed out Barnes received 48,307 votes less than Evers as the guv won reelection three years ago. Critics have seized on that to suggest Barnes could struggle with swing voters.
Since that 2022 campaign, Barnes has served as president of Power to the Polls Wisconsin, a Dem GOTV group, and founded Forward Together Wisconsin, which supports federal investment in clean energy technologies. He also created The Long Run PAC to support candidates.
Barnes’ campaign said he will stop down from Power to the Polls and Forward Together Wisconsin.
Barnes joins a crowded field that already features eight other Dems seeking the party’s nomination: Milwaukee County Exec David Crowley; state Rep. Francesca Hong, of Madison; former WEDC Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes; former state Rep. Brett Hulsey, of Madison; Tim Jacobson, of Neenah; Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez; Zachary Roper, of Muskego; and state Sen. Kelda Roys, of Madison.
Meanwhile, Joel Brennan, president of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, has been weighing a run.
