Two-Time Failed Candidate Tim Michels Announces Campaign for Governor

MADISON, Wis. – Today, Tim Michels announced he is entering the Republican primary for governor. Making the Republican field so crowded that it’s already #TimTime… again.

Michels last ran for office more than twenty years ago, so we have a lot of questions. First among them: who is Tim Michels? That’s why the Democratic Party of Wisconsin is launching TimMichels.com — a place where we put the long list of questions Michels needs to answer now that he’s running for governor.

For starters: who does Tim Michels believe won the 2020 election? And does he believe the election was fair and accurate, or will he be pandering to the far-right like the rest of the Republicans running for governor and jumping on a plane down to Mar-a-Lago?

Just like the rest of the Republican field, embracing extreme positions wouldn’t be anything new for Tim Michels. We do know he has said he wants to overturn Roe v. Wade and ban abortions with no exceptions for rape or incest, he’s previously come out against gay marriage, and his business has been sued repeatedly for walking off the job and for overcharging the state of Wisconsin for a construction project.

Michels’ ties to the extreme candidates on the ballot are undeniable. Before deciding to challenge Rebecca Kleefisch, Michels served on the Advisory Board of Kleefisch’s 1848 Project – which proposed a laundry list of radical policy proposals for the state, including putting the state legislature in charge of election administration. Michels also served on the board of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the far-right special interest dark-money group that endorsed and is currently running ads supporting Kleefisch.

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler released the following statement:

“This Republican primary field for governor is a case of quantity over quality. Tim Michels is the fourth candidate to enter this mess of a nomination fight — and the Republicans still don’t have a single candidate who isn’t too divisive for Wisconsin.

“Tim Michels has a murky business record and a history of swindling Wisconsin taxpayers and abandoning communities in need. And as a former Rebecca Kleefisch advisor, it’s unsurprising that Michels holds the same radical beliefs as Kleefisch, including wanting to ban abortions with no exceptions and supporting a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. The one clear distinction between Tim Michels and the other candidates is that he’s the only Republican running for governor who has already failed in two attempts to win public office.

“Tim Michels can’t skirt questions about his beliefs and needs to be held accountable — does he stand behind Rebecca Kleefisch and Donald Trump’s radical agenda for Wisconsin?”

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.