WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAU) — B.B. Jack’s Pizza and Sandwich Lounge was the site of a Republican Party Unity event hosted by U.S. Congressman Sean Duffy Tuesday night.
Supporters of both Ted Cruz and Donald Trump watched the results of the state’s elections together as Cruz was announced as the winner of Wisconsin’s Republican primary. Duffy himself made it to the party after the race was called and said that party unity was the goal after the voting showed the state divided between the candidates.
He said, “There was a lot of turnout in southeast Wisconsin for Ted Cruz, a lot of passion, a lot of energy. But if you look at central, northern, and western Wisconsin, that was a little more fertile ground for Donald Trump, and you see a far closer race in the seventh district, which is what I represent.”
When it came to the Democratic nomination, Duffy speculated that their convention may be just as divided as the Republican’s with Bernie Sanders’ victory.
“A lot of people talk about the Republican party and all the angst between Cruz and Trump. They don’t talk enough about what’s going to happen with the Democrat primary between Bernie and Hillary where there’s a lot of tension, a lot of passion. Their convention could be just as raucous, or more raucous, than the Republican convention,” said Congressman Duffy.
Though Sanders now stands a better chance to earn the nomination, Duffy doesn’t believe he represents as much of a threat nationally as Hillary Clinton.
“Americans look at our government and see it as being ineffective. They see it as bloated. To have a candidate that could win a national race and want more of that, I don’t think is a real possibility.”
Overall, Duffy was very pleased with the enthusiasm throughout the state for what is historically seen as an election period that isn’t as important to the public.
“When people are passionate about one of their candidates, and they go out and vote, I think that’s great for democracy, it’s great for our community, and that’s what happened here in Wausau and all of central Wisconsin, and across our state.”
The congressman told the crowd he would support the Republican nominee, regardless of who earns it.
