Are Wisconsin Democrats Trying to Torpedo Francesca Hong's Gubernatorial Run?

Francesca Hong, the Democratic socialist running for Wisconsin Governor, is as Leftist as they come. Just the other day, she refused to denounce her position on defunding the police, a dangerous position she's held for years. That comes on top of revelations that she'd block ICE from operating in the state and govern as Democratic socialists always do: with the crushing weight of the state, increased taxes, increased crime, and a decline in the quality of life for all of Wisconsin.

The Dairy State is, however, a swing state that's had Republican control of the state legislature for more than a decade. In 2016 and 2024, the state went to President Trump, with 2016 making him the first Republican to win the state since Reagan in 1984. That appears to be making Wisconsin Democrats wary of Hong.

This means that the oppo dump on her 'defund the police' stance wasn't an accident. It was a deliberate effort by Wisconsin Democrats to end Hong's gubernatorial aspirations.

With a well-placed bit of opposition research at CNN, Democrats have telegraphed that it's time for Francesca Hong to go. https://t.co/bM3I0QuW1E pic.twitter.com/ic0U8japN5
— The Heartland Post (@HeartlandPostWI) May 24, 2026

Here's more:

In a move that smacks of cutthroat Democratic primary politics, CNN dropped a batch of fresh opposition research on leading gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong highlighting her radical calls to abolish the police just as outside groups start spending money to boost her more moderate opponents.
CNN’s KFile reported Friday that Hong has not backed away from her extreme “defund then abolish” rhetoric, even years after the Democratic Party tried to bury the toxic slogan following electoral disasters in 2020.Hong repeatedly pushed to eliminate police departments, declaring in one X post her support for “defunding the police as a first step towards abolishing the police.”
“Police exist to uphold white supremacy,” she wrote in a 2021 post. “Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option.”
Notably, Hong has not backed down from this radical stance at all. In a statement to CNN, she called her past comments part of a “wider conversation around police abolition” and admitted that this is still her end goal.
...
The Democratic primary is less than three months away and Hong is the only candidate in the crowded field who has gained any real traction with voters or generated any actual enthusiasm. She has consistently led or has been near the lead in every poll conducted this year, and with nine candidates on the ballot, her loyal base could easily propel her to victory as her opponents suffer from a split vote.
She is also an unapologetic radical whose far-left policies are poison in a general election. “If elected, I will abolish your local police department” doesn’t exactly play well in rural Wisconsin (or anywhere else, for that matter). Democrats are of course cognizant of this and are desperate to avoid a repeat of the 2022 US Senate race, in which Hong’s fellow socialist Mandela Barnes lost to Sen. Ron Johnson on the same ballot in which Gov. Tony Evers won reelection relatively easily.
Democrats see Hong suffering the same fate against Republican Tom Tiffany—a folksy, down-home and, most importantly, normal guy. Even in a big year for Democrats, normal beats crazy every single time.