EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — This week Rebecca Cooke’s campaign for Congress announced the endorsement of former Congressman Ron Kind who served Wisconsin’s Third District from 1997 to 2023. Cooke defeated Democrats Katrina Shankland and Eric Wilson in the August primary to become the party nominee to take on incumbent Republican Derrick Van Orden.
“As someone who represented the incredibly varied communities of the 3rd District for 26 years in Congress, I know what it takes to make real progress for every Wisconsinite who lives here,” said Rep. Kind. “Rebecca Cooke has the right stuff to hit the ground running and start delivering for us. Derrick Van Orden isn’t getting the job done, and we deserve leadership that shares our values, vision, and priorities. That’s Rebecca Cooke — she’ll work to lower costs, expand healthcare access, and protect reproductive freedom. She doesn’t care about getting credit, just getting results, and has the Wisconsin work ethic to actually get the job done right.”
“Ron Kind knows what it takes to represent and truly serve working people across west central Wisconsin,” said Rebecca Cooke. “Unlike Derrick Van Orden who embarasses our communities on the national stage, Congressman Kind understands the importance of improving healthcare access, protecting families’ pocketbooks and freedoms, and getting impactful results. I’m honored to have him by our side in this race as we work together to defeat Van Orden and restore principled leadership who put people first.”
The 3rd Congressional District in western Wisconsin is a big target for Democrats this year, with hopes of unseating Van Orden after just one term. The Republican has regularly made headlines nationally for public outbursts and his attendance at the Jan.6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
Cooke also ran in the 2022 Democratic primary, losing that race to state Sen. Brad Pfaff (D-Onalaska). Pfaff lost the general election by 3.7 points, with many Democrats across the state blaming the loss on national Democrats for withdrawing financial support for Pfaff in a winnable race.
Rebecca Cooke is endorsed by over a dozen labor unions, leaders, and organizations, including the Blue Dog PAC, New Democrats Coalition, Wisconsin AFL-CIO, EMILYs List, Reproductive Freedoms for All, Communications Workers of America (CWA), Wisconsin SEIU American Postal Workers Union (APWU), Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU), members of Congress Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS), Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME), Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA), Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA), Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10), and Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA), among others.
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