In 2022, Connecticut man Tim Michels was the Republican nominee for Wisconsin governor. He lost by almost 5 points.
To build on that "success," Wisconsin Republcans decided to outsource another race. This time, they are running Eric Hovde in the 2024 race for US Senate against Senator Tammy Baldwin:
National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Steve Daines told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Wednesday that the wealthy Madison banking mogul will enter the race in the near future with the backing of the Senate GOP’s top campaign arm.
“Eric Hovde is gonna get in that race,” Daines, a Montana Republican, said during a brief interview outside the Senate’s subway system. “We’re behind him.”
It's actually kind of fitting that a guy from Montana is making the announcement, since the actual candidate himself is living large in Laguna Beach, California.
Records show the Republican banker paid nearly $7 million in 2018 to buy a luxurious hillside estate in Laguna Beach, California, with an unimpeded view of the shimmering Pacific Ocean. The California residence cost more than three times what Hovde paid for his Madison house on Lake Mendota, though it is nearly half the size.
By purchasing the California home, Hovde put himself only 15 miles away from his Irvine-based H Bancorp and its primary subsidiary, Sunwest Bank. He is chairman and CEO of both entities.
Besides being from out of state, Hovde has another thing in common with Michels. He also has more money than he knows what to do with, so he often runs for office without ever winning an office at any level.
One of Hovde's potental primary opponents, David Clarke - yeah, THAT David Clarke - isn't too impressed with Hovde or the RNC:
Specifically, he’s said his party is “against winning” and accused top GOP campaign groups of seeking wealthy candidates who can self-fund their campaigns.
“That’s not surprising,” Clarke said when asked for comment on Daines’ decision to publicly throw his support behind Hovde, a multi-millionaire. He doubled down on his claim that the group is looking for “filthy rich guys.”
“That’s a bad look,” Clarke said. “That obviously excludes me. I don’t know any filthy rich Black people in Wisconsin who can run.”
In other words, Clarke is pissed because a self-funded rich boy would make it a lot harder for him to grift. And all those plastic and tin fake medals aren't cheap, y'know!
Another potential primary opponent, Franklin businessman Scott Mayer, was also dismissive of the announcement, saying that the voters in Wisconsin will elect the nominee, not the NRC. By the way, Franklin is in Wisconsin, so Mayer has that going for him.
