Tuesday’s primaries are setting the matchups in around a half-dozen competitive House races that will be key to the fight for the House majority in November, including in a hotly contested Democratic target in Wisconsin.Rebecca Cooke won the Democratic primary in Wisconsin’s 3rd District, NBC News projects, and will take on two-term GOP Rep.Derrick Van Orden in the fall.
The race will be a rematch from 2024, when Cooke lost to Van Orden by about 3 points even though President Donald Trump carried the district by 7 points.A small business owner, Cooke has touted her roots growing up on a dairy farm and tried to eschew political labels, boasting a range of supporters from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to moderate groups like New Dems and Blue Dogs to a progressive icon in Sen.Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
“I am a Blue Dog and a New Dem, but I’m also very progressive where it counts,” Cooke told NBC News last year.“I don’t like the labels and the boxes that kind of have been created, because immediately, you know, you’re written off and ‘othered’ in your party because you’re this or because you’re that.
And really, I’m just — I’m running because I’m for western Wisconsin, period.” Republicans are looking to paint her as too far left for the district.Van Orden campaign spokesperson Grace Kim recently said in a statement that Cook “has aligned herself with the most extreme elements of her party,” pointing to footage of her saying she would support Zohran Mamdani for mayor of New York City and calling for a ban on AR-15 rifles.
Cooke has proven to be a strong fundraiser, pulling in nearly $8.6 million to Van Orden’s $7.5 million so far this election cycle.And the race is sure to attract millions more: Super PACs from both parties have already reserved $9 million in airtime for the fall, according to AdImpact.
More Democratic targetsDemocrats also hope they can put another Wisconsin race in play in November: the 1st Di...