Barnes’ Comeback Bid: Democrats Fractured as Wisconsin Braces for Chaos

Paul Riverbank, 12/3/2025Mandela Barnes re-enters a fractured field as Wisconsin braces for a pivotal, unpredictable race.

For many in Milwaukee or the far corners of the Driftless Area, Barnes isn’t merely a name on a placard. Memories of his tight Senate contest with Ron Johnson are still raw, and there’s a certain political fatigue that trails him. That race—so recently lost by a hair’s breadth—lodges in Democratic minds. A few party strategists, never ones to mince words, wonder: Did Barnes’ struggle signal a ceiling for his appeal? They point to the cold arithmetic—50,000 votes, the distance by which he trailed Governor Tony Evers last time the state tallied up.

Yet Barnes isn’t shrinking from the challenge. His campaign launch leans hard into kitchen-table economics—the worries about rent, groceries, whether the paycheck’s enough to cover both. On video, Barnes strikes a note of Midwestern exasperation at political theater from Washington. “The only way for our state to move forward is to reject the Washington way and get things done the Wisconsin way,” he proclaims, just above a murmur. Not left, not right—just a practical call to survival. He also takes a half-swipe at national drama, pointing a finger at former President Trump’s “chaos” as something Wisconsinites are, frankly, tired of.

Still, it’s no clear runway for Barnes. Crowding the Democratic starting gate are at least seven others. Take Sara Rodriguez, the current lieutenant governor—quietly methodical, a known entity among centrist voters. David Crowley, Milwaukee County’s executive, is seen mixing pragmatic governance with aspirational hope. Further down the list: Kelda Roys, with her policy wonk energy; Francesca Hong, the chef-turned-legislator who speaks in brisk, kitchen terms; and Missy Hughes, steeped in economic development, likely to make the unemployment rate her campaign’s north star. Not to be forgotten, there’s Brett Hulsey—his name pops up in wonkier Madison circles, but he certainly won’t be headlining the fundraising charts. Nobody expects the others to fold just because Barnes has stepped in—this isn’t a queen’s coronation. The primary, for once, is anybody’s to steal.

Each candidate, you sense, is desperately in search of a North Star message. Barnes wants to brand himself as the antidote to outrage—less “let’s go viral,” more “let’s make rent.” Privately, insiders agree: whoever ignores Wisconsin’s relentless grind—the rising bills, the jobs that move out before you realize they’re gone—does so at their own peril.

Flip the ballot, and the Republican matchup is shaping up, but it’s not written in stone either. State Rep. Tom Tiffany brings a northwoods grit, while Josh Schoemann, operating from Washington County, prefers “back-to-basics” language over social media fireworks. Both are testing the waters, no one’s pulled decisively ahead, and though echoes of Trump linger in their platforms, neither has yet staged the kind of high-wire act that can so easily trip up a statewide hopeful in this divided state.

Pundits at The Cook Political Report—never ones to traffic in wishful thinking—already chalk it up as a toss-up. They have a knack for reading Wisconsin’s mood: it’s a place that can turn overnight, sometimes for reasons that are never totally clear, even after the votes are counted.

So what really matters in this race? If you’re sitting with a coffee at a breakfast counter in La Crosse, or catching a late bus home in Green Bay, it’s the practical stuff: Can I pay my bills? Is my job safe? Is my family secure? Lombardi Avenue to Lake Michigan, people are wary of politicians who promise too much or listen too little.

The calendar says August 2026 is a long way off, but in Wisconsin politics, the wind changes fast and so do the odds. Watch closely—what happens here may well write the next chapter in America’s political notebook. If history is any guide, expect a contest decided not by bold pronouncements, but by the subtle, relentless anxieties of voters who know exactly what it feels like to come up a handful of votes short.

The shadows haven’t quite settled from the last round of Wisconsin’s political brawls. Early summer edges in, and you can feel something stirring—call it possibility, call it déjà vu. Into this half-lit arena strides Mandela Barnes, no stranger to the spotlight or to stinging defeat. He released a campaign video on a Tuesday morning that felt oddly expectant, bringing months of rumors to a close: Barnes is, indeed, running for governor.For many in Milwaukee or the far corners of the Driftless Area, Barnes isn’t merely a name on a placard. Memories of his tight Senate contest with Ron Johnson are still raw, and there’s a certain political fatigue that trails him. That race—so recently lost by a hair’s breadth—lodges in Democratic minds. A few party strategists, never ones to mince words, wonder: Did Barnes’ struggle signal a ceiling for his appeal? They point to the cold arithmetic—50,000 votes, the distance by which he trailed Governor Tony Evers last time the state tallied up.Yet Barnes isn’t shrinking from the challenge. His campaign launch leans hard into kitchen-table economics—the worries about rent, groceries, whether the paycheck’s enough to cover both. On video, Barnes strikes a note of Midwestern exasperation at political theater from Washington. “The only way for our state to move forward is to reject the Washington way and get things done the Wisconsin way,” he proclaims, just above a murmur. Not left, not right—just a practical call to survival. He also takes a half-swipe at national drama, pointing a finger at former President Trump’s “chaos” as something Wisconsinites are, frankly, tired of.Still, it’s no clear runway for Barnes. Crowding the Democratic starting gate are at least seven others. Take Sara Rodriguez, the current lieutenant governor—quietly methodical, a known entity among centrist voters. David Crowley, Milwaukee County’s executive, is seen mixing pragmatic governance with aspirational hope. Further down the list: Kelda Roys, with her policy wonk energy; Francesca Hong, the chef-turned-legislator who speaks in brisk, kitchen terms; and Missy Hughes, steeped in economic development, likely to make the unemployment rate her campaign’s north star. Not to be forgotten, there’s Brett Hulsey—his name pops up in wonkier Madison circles, but he certainly won’t be headlining the fundraising charts. Nobody expects the others to fold just because Barnes has stepped in—this isn’t a queen’s coronation. The primary, for once, is anybody’s to steal.Each candidate, you sense, is desperately in search of a North Star message. Barnes wants to brand himself as the antidote to outrage—less “let’s go viral,” more “let’s make rent.” Privately, insiders agree: whoever ignores Wisconsin’s relentless grind—the rising bills, the jobs that move out before you realize they’re gone—does so at their own peril.Flip the ballot, and the Republican matchup is shaping up, but it’s not written in stone either. State Rep. Tom Tiffany brings a northwoods grit, while Josh Schoemann, operating from Washington County, prefers “back-to-basics” language over social media fireworks. Both are testing the waters, no one’s pulled decisively ahead, and though echoes of Trump linger in their platforms, neither has yet staged the kind of high-wire act that can so easily trip up a statewide hopeful in this divided state.Pundits at The Cook Political Report—never ones to traffic in wishful thinking—already chalk it up as a toss-up. They have a knack for reading Wisconsin’s mood: it’s a place that can turn overnight, sometimes for reasons that are never totally clear, even after the votes are counted.So what really matters in this race? If you’re sitting with a coffee at a breakfast counter in La Crosse, or catching a late bus home in Green Bay, it’s the practical stuff: Can I pay my bills? Is my job safe? Is my family secure? Lombardi Avenue to Lake Michigan, people are wary of politicians who promise too much or listen too little.The calendar says August 2026 is a long way off, but in Wisconsin politics, the wind changes fast and so do the odds. Watch closely—what happens here may well write the next chapter in America’s political notebook. If history is any guide, expect a contest decided not by bold pronouncements, but by the subtle, relentless anxieties of voters who know exactly what it feels like to come up a handful of votes short.