After election loss, GOP Senate candidate Eric Hovde refuses to concede

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- One week after the election, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde is refusing to concede after his narrow defeat to Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin.

In a nearly five-minute video posted on "X," Hovde made a series of claims about the election that were either false or misleading. Hovde left open the possibility of requesting a recount.

"Once the final information is available and all options are reviewed, I'll announce my decision on how I will proceed," Hovde said.

It marked the first time Hovde broke his silence since the Associated Press called the race for Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin on Wednesday. Baldwin won by 29,116 votes, or 0.9 percentage points, according to unofficial results.

The Milwaukee Elections Commission denounced Hovde's video after he blamed his loss on late-night tallies of absentee ballots at Milwaukee Central Count. The city finished counting over 100,000 ballots around 4 a.m., which ultimately gave Baldwin enough votes to take the lead over Hovde.

"The Milwaukee Election Commission (MEC) unequivocally refutes Eric Hovde’s baseless claims regarding the integrity of our election process," the commission said in a statement.

"It is both expected and routine that absentee ballots—over 100,000 in this case—are counted and reported in the late hours of Election Night due to Wisconsin’s high voter turnout and the rigorous verification standards the MEC upholds."

Hovde falsely stated in his video that "around 1 a.m." on election night, "based on the models, it appeared I would win the Senate race."

Multiple GOP operatives that night pointed out how the ballots still waiting to be processed in central count cities like Milwaukee, Racine and Green Bay were going to heavily favor Baldwin, not Hovde. They predicted at the time the surge would likely tip the election for Baldwin while it wouldn't be enough to make up for the turnout President-elect Donald Trump rustled up statewide, including in Milwaukee.

"I think the problem with Mr. Hovde's claims is he seems to think he was entitled to have as many votes as Donald Trump," Wisconsin Elections Commission Chair Ann Jacobs said. "And the problem is the voters didn't agree."

Hovde said, since then, many people have reached out to him urging him to contest the election. He claimed there were irregularities in the city of Milwaukee's absentee results.

"Milwaukee reported approximately 108,000 absentee ballots, with Senator Baldwin receiving nearly 90% of those ballots," Hovde said. "Statistically, this outcome seems improbable."

Baldwin actually won 82% of Milwaukee's absentee ballots while winning 75% of the city's Election Day vote. 

GOP insiders 'blindsided'

Meanwhile, prominent GOP strategists told CBS 58 they were "blindsided" by Hovde's video and refusal to concede.

"We thought he was going to concede today… he's going to ruin his reputation with this."

Another responded, "What the hell is he thinking?"

For six days, Hovde remained silent after the Associated Press called the race for Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin on Wednesday. Baldwin won by 29,116 votes or 0.9 percentage points, according to unofficial results.

Hovde can request a recount because the margin of victory is less than 1%, but he would have to cover the costs because the margin was greater than 0.25%. The Republican Party of Wisconsin offered a neutral statement when asked for a comment on Hovde's video.

“As a candidate, Eric Hovde has the right to request a recount and pursue legal remedies to address whatever concerns he may have regarding the election," Andrew Iverson, the Wisconsin GOP's executive director, said.

Hours before Hovde's announcement, the state Republican Party said it never received a request from the Hovde campaign regarding a recount.

"We have not been asked by the Hovde campaign to pay for any recount," Iverson said.

Elections officials debunk Hovde claims

Hovde also raised concerns over what he claimed were wards where the amount of votes was 150% or even 200% of the amount of registered voters.

Milwaukee County Elections Director Michelle Hawley pointed to a ward in Franklin that had nearly twice as many votes as registered voters and said that was a data entry error where numbers were put in the wrong column. Hawley said those errors were being fixed as part of the county's canvassing process, which she said would be done in Milwaukee County Friday morning.

In other cases, Hawley said it's not unusual for vote totals to exceed the number of registered voters because Wisconsin allows same-day voter registration.

"As a reminder to everyone, it is possible to register to vote on Election Day," she said. "And so, the numbers on our website that reflect the number of registered voters were pulled as of the day before the election."

Hovde also called out how Milwaukee's absentee votes weren't registered until nearly 4 a.m. last Wednesday. Due to a problem where tabulators didn't have sealed doors, Milwaukee elections officials announced on the afternoon of Election Day they would recount the first 30,000 absentee ballots, further delaying the process.

It is common for Milwaukee absentee results to come in late, especially in the 2020 and 2024 elections where there was a surge in absentee voting. In 2020, there were more than 165,000 absentee votes in Milwaukee, while there were nearly 109,000 absentee ballots cast in the city this year.

Despite bipartisan support to change state law and allow municipal clerks to begin processing absentee ballots the Monday before Election Day, a bill that passed the Assembly was blocked by Senate Republicans last spring.

"These conspiracy theorists who think [late absentee reporting is] some sort of nefarious thing are simply ignoring reality," Jacobs said. "Ignoring what everyone has explained to them because they think it helps their side, when in fact it just makes them look kind of stupid."

On Tuesday, counties could begin the process of formally approving last week's election results. The canvass reports are due to the Wisconsin Elections Commission by Nov. 19. If reports are turned in prior to that, Hovde will then have three days from that date to request a recount.

WEC has until Dec. 1 to formally certify the results.