LITTLE CHUTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – At the height of the campaign season, candidates are working to make the right impression on voters in Northeast Wisconsin.
On Wednesday, state Republicans held an event in Little Chute focused on the manufacturing industry and its impacts on government regulation. Eric Hovde, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, also used it as an opportunity to dispel attacks from his opponent, Tammy Baldwin.
According to the latest Marquette Law School Poll, incumbent Baldwin leads Hovde by 5%. It comes as those same voters are split 50/50 between President Biden and Trump.
FOX 11 asked Hovde his thoughts on the latest numbers.
“Look, I’m three months in. They’ve spent an unbelievable amount of money – the politics of personal destruction – making up stories about me and running ads, so I’m kind of surprised my polling numbers are doing this well with the wave of negativity they’ve dropped on me. But as the campaign moves forward and people start focusing on the issues and what I stand for versus what Tammy Baldwin stands for — look, this race is going to tighten up and tighten up fast,” Hovde says.
State Democrats, however, say there’s a reason Baldwin is leading. In a statement provided to FOX 11, the party says:
Megamillionaire California bank owner Eric Hovde continues to insult the people of Wisconsin at every turn, which is why he is viewed unfavorably by Wisconsinites of every age group. This fall, voters will choose Tammy Baldwin who always fights for working families.
At Wednesday’s event, Hovde told employees at the manufacturing plant that one of the biggest misconceptions about him is his ties to California.
Hovde owns a business and a home there. It’s a topic state Democrats continue to focus on.
“The gentleman here has factories all over the country and it is the equivalent of saying even though he lives here and his home base is here, to say because he has a factory in South Carolina, he’s a South Carolinian. That’s the equivalent of what they’ve tried to do to me. I’m a fourth generation Wisconsinite, born and raised, [went to] East High, UW, my youngest daughter graduated high school here. I live in Madison – so why would that even be an issue? I’m a Wisconsinite,” Hovde said.
This week, an announcement was made that Hovde and Baldwin will debate in a televised event on October 18th.
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