David Crowley and Tom Tiffany are preparing different messages for the sole gubernatorial debate of 2026 — airing Wednesday night on the “UpFront” network.

“My staff, they want me prepared,” Tiffany said on “UpFront” which, along with the debate, is produced by WISN-TV in partnership with WisPolitics. “They always have prepared me well, but it’s a matter of just going back through and emphasizing those issues that are important to Wisconsin.”

Crowley added, “We’re definitely preparing. But the preparation comes from talking to people and hearing directly from the issues that matter most to them, and how they’ve been affected by the decisions of Congressman Tom Tiffany and the Trump administration.”

Both Crowley and Tiffany offered insight into potential messaging they’ll attempt to get across on the debate stage.

“We want to make sure that we’re delivering, helping people understand that there’s a clear contrast,” Crowley said. “You’re going to have Congressman Tom Tiffany who’s going to do the bidding of these billionaire donors and sell Wisconsin out while I’m focused on delivering for hard-working families.”

Tiffany said his message will be consistent with what he’s said on the campaign trail.

“I’m straightforward with the voters,” Tiffany said. “So what I was saying a year ago, I’m saying the same things now. It’s about affordability. We need to end the 400-year property tax increase. I was saying that a year ago. I’m saying it now. So the message will not change from me, and I’m just going to continue to deliver that, including in the debate.”

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, the potential 2028 presidential candidate who recently campaigned for Crowley, dismissed calls for the Milwaukee County executive to embrace the democratic socialist platform.

“I think we need to focus on the things that we are going to do,” Moore told “UpFront.”

Crowley beat democratic socialist Francesca Hong by fewer than 4,000 votes in the primary. Hong recently said Crowley should let her supporters know he shares their values.

Moore said Crowley needs to share his values with voters, noting he won the primary while adding, “I think David is doing just fine.”

“I think the job is not to defend the Democratic Party,” Moore added more broadly. “The job is to defend your people. I’m always very clear. I didn’t come from a political background or a political family. Frankly, the Democratic Party put a whole lot of money against me when I first ran, and so the thing that I always knew was that the Democratic Party, our party bosses were never going to make me the governor. The people of Maryland would.”

GOP U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil says his district is “the 10th most competitive in the United States of America” as more national resources from both sides pour into southeastern Wisconsin’s 1st CD.

“Every time I’ve run, we’ve seen time and again national Democrats pour millions of dollars into this race,” the Janesville Republican told “UpFront.” “My first race, they spent $8.9 million against me. Last cycle, $5 million. This cycle, $5 million so far and increasing. We win this by talking to voters. It’s not the airwaves. This is about going out, having conversations with voters about the issues that matter most, and at the end of the day, we’ve been successful before, and I believe we’ll be successful yet again.”

The Republican-backed Congressional Leadership Fund recently put $3 million into the race after the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced it was investing in Mitchell Berman’s bid.

Steil dismissed the impact of President Donald Trump’s low approval rating in Wisconsin.

“You know who’s less popular than him?” Steil said. “Democrats. You know why? Because their positions are absolutely out of step with what the American people want.”

Meanwhile, Democrat Mitchell Berman says the race between him and Steil is “extremely close.”

“Our polling shows us up by one point over Bryan Steil right now,” he told “UpFront.” “And I think it’s because for the same reason I got into the race, right? People are tired of their representatives in Washington working at the behest of their corporate donors.”

Berman said he’s talking to voters about the costs of living and making healthcare affordable while “making sure our politicians in Washington are working for us and not for themselves.”

Berman said bluntly, “I’m not a democratic socialist, so I don’t know what to tell you,” when asked about the movement in Wisconsin and nationwide. He added voters are looking for someone who’s going to help improve their lives.

“I think you have to look at the alternative, right?” Berman added when asked about Francesca Hong’s supporters. “So I think when you have those options, somebody who’s going to actually go make Washington work for working people again is the choice I would make.”

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