Tiffany enters race for governor; GOP primary now at 3 candidates

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Following months of speculation, Congressman Tom Tiffany announced Tuesday he's running for governor. Tiffany launched his candidacy in a release Tuesday, September 23, and he'll kick off the campaign Wednesday evening with a rally in Wausau.

Tiffany is the third Republican in the GOP primary field, while the Democratic side is now at five candidates following the announcements of two state lawmakers last week. 

In a sit-down interview Tuesday, Tiffany said he's looking right past his Republican primary opponents and focusing solely on the general election.

He's confident a strategy that would win a general election will also win over primary voters.

Tiffany said, "My goal here is to win the governorship in Wisconsin. And I think it's very important to focus on that from the beginning."

Tiffany acknowledged some may think it dangerous to look past his primary opponents. But he feels Republicans are hungry to win a statewide race, and that's what he's focusing on.

He's confident people from all across Wisconsin will identify with his born-and-raised story.

He told us, "We're going to go compete in every part of Wisconsin. There are times we maybe haven't given as much attention, maybe, to Milwaukee or especially to Dane County."

Tiffany had hinted for months at entering the race for governor. At the Wisconsin State Fair last month, Tiffany told CBS 58 he'd decide whether to enter the race by the end of September. 

Another sign Tiffany was leaning toward a run for state office was his shift in often weighing in on state-level politics, frequently criticizing Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

Tiffany has been outspoken about instances of undocumented immigrants committing crimes in Wisconsin, saying in August he wanted to cut all federal funding to Dane County over its policies regarding cooperation with U.S. Immigration Customs & Enforcement (ICE).

Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett has disputed Tiffany's account, saying the sheriff's office would honor ICE arrest warrants but not administrative ones. Barrett was responding to Tiffany's comments about a July crash in which a woman in the U.S. illegally killed two Minnesota teens while driving drunk. 

Tiffany, whose congressional district primarily includes the Northwoods, was elected to Congress in the spring of 2020 in a special election. Prior to that, he served in the state Legislature, first elected to the Assembly in 2010, then to the Senate in 2012.

In the 2017-2018 biennium, Tiffany received a promotion of sorts, being tabbed to serve on the powerful Joint Committee on Finance, which crafts the state budget every two years. 

While Tiffany is not focusing on his primary opponents, there is one Republican everyone in the race is watching.

We asked if he's seeking an endorsement from President Trump. He said, "The President is going to decide what he's going to do in regards to that."

Tiffany said he spoke to the president weeks ago when Governor Evers announced he wouldn't run again. He said the President's first question was 'what will happen to your seat?'

The president did not endorse him, though Tiffany said he didn't ask. "I think the most important thing for me is to make the case, not just to President Trump, but to the voters of Wisconsin and to others who I want them to support me."

Tiffany now joins Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann and New Berlin business owner Bill Berrien in the Republican primary. On the Democratic side, the declared candidates so far include Lt. Gov. Sara Rodgriguez, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, State Sen. Kelda Roys, State Rep. Francesca Hong and Ryan Strnad, a beer vendor at American Family Field.