June 19, 2025
EAU CLAIRE, Wisc. – Today, the campaign to elect Rebecca Cooke in Wisconsin’s competitive Third Congressional District announced the endorsement of Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
“I am proud to endorse Rebecca Cooke in Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District. At a time when the very rich are getting much richer while 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, we need fighters in Congress who will stand up for working families and take on the greed of powerful special interests. And that’s what Rebecca will do,” said Senator Sanders. “Rebecca is a working class fighter who developed her populist roots in rural Western Wisconsin. A daughter of farmers, a waitress and a small business owner – she’s lived through failed policies from Washington elites and is ready to deliver tangible outcomes that working people will actually feel. She will be an ally to me in the House as she works to enforce antitrust laws against corporate monopolies that have bankrupted family farms like hers, raise the federal minimum wage to a living wage and expand Medicare to cover vision, dental and hearing. Rebecca and I share a common goal – building opportunities for the working class. I believe as my partner in Congress she will do just that.”
“I am honored to receive the endorsement of Senator Bernie Sanders – a true champion for the working class. Senator Sanders cuts through the fray of Washington because he’s not afraid to speak truth to power of elite political establishments. He’s spent his career fighting for the same values that drive our campaign here in Wisconsin’s Third District: putting people over politics, taking on corporate greed, and building a future that works for everyone—not just the wealthy and well-connected,” said Rebecca Cooke. “I’m proud to stand alongside Senator Sanders in this fight, and I’m more determined than ever to bring a working-class voice to Congress.”
Cooke first ran for the congressional seat in 2022 when she lost a three way primary to fellow Democrat, state Sen. Brad Pfaff. Van Orden later defeated Pfaff in the November general election.
Last year, Cooke emerged from another three-way Democratic primary to challenge Van Orden for the seat, which he’s held since 2023. Van Orden went on to defeat Cooke in November by just under 3 percentage points, or just over 11,000 votes.
The district had previously been held by former U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, a Democrat, for 26 years.
In her announcement that she would run for the seat again just months after the previous election, Cooke pointed out that she outperformed both Kamala Harris and Tammy Baldwin in her district, and only lost by 3% to a staunch Trump ally in a district Trump won by 7%.
The endorsement for Sanders might surprise some since Cooke ran fairly centrist campaign last time around and had the endorsement of moderate groups like the New Democrat Coalition and Blue Dog Democrats, groups known for bipartisanship. The Blue Dog PAC has already endorsed Cooke again.
In an interview with NBC News Cooke pushed back against those who might question the endorsement saying she hopes the party can get away from “purity tests” and labels and focus on building a broad base.
“I am a Blue Dog and a new Dem, but I’m also very progressive where it counts,” Cooke told NBC. “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.”
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