Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026
Posted: March 6, 2026
Updated: August 19, 2026
Fall: Oath • Spending
Spring: Oath • Spending
Based in Shorewood, Wisconsin, the Half Court Political Fund first registered with the state to make independent expenditures in the 2025 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election. This committee shares its address and treasurer with Wisco Project PAC, a federally registered political action committee (PAC) also operating as an unregistered express advocacy group in this year's spring elections. The treasurer for the two committees, Paul Sickel, also lobbies for SEIU – Wisconsin, the state affiliate of the Service Employees International Union, the union that represents health care, service and public sector workers. The state SEIU has also reported making independent expenditures in the spring elections. Half Court Political Fund has not reported any income since 2025's spring elections, but all its money that year came from three sources, the aforementioned Wisco Project PAC, Project 72 Wisconsin, and A Better Wisconsin Together, the last named also active in this year's high court election. Project 72 Wisconsin shares a street address with Wisco Project PAC and its federal PAC made $421,000 in independent expenditures opposing the Republican candidate in Wisconsin's 2024 U.S. Senate election.
In the first half of 2026, Half Court Political Fund's income was just over $180,000, with $150,000 from the Strategic Victory Fund, based in North Carolina, and $30,000 from San Francisco-based Tech for Campaigns. Strategic Victory Fund was started in 2020 to oppose President Donald Trump and works to promote Democrats at the state level. It also has a federally registered independent expenditure committee. Tech for Campaigns works to elect Democratic and left-of center candidates, and it, too, has a federal independent expenditure committee. Tech for Campaigns made independent expenditures in the 2023 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election as an unregistered committee.
Fall Election
Half Court Political Fund first reported making independent expenditures in the 2026 fall partisan state elections, two weeks from the August 11th primary. It spent $9,000 for online advertising against U.S. Congrsessman Tom Tiffany scheduled to run through the primary. A member the far-right House Freedom Caucus, Tiffany enjoys the endorsement of the President Donald Trump and faced only token oppostion in the Republican primary from political newcomer Andy Manske. Meanwhile, seven Democrats appeared on their party's primary ballot, although three of them had suspended their campaigns by August.
The day after the primary, the committee reportedn spending $58,500 for online advertising to support the winner in the Democratic primary for governor, Milwaukee County Executive and former state legislator David Crowley, in the November 3rd election. The Democratic incumbent, Gov. Tony Evers, is not seeking a third term.
Three days after the primary, the group reported spending over another $204,000 to pay campaign staff through September 23rd. In addition to Crowley in the governor's race, it is supporting Democrats in three state senate races - the 5th, 17th, and 21st - and six assembly contests, the 21st, 30th, 53rd, 61st, 88th and 92nd. All the legislative seats are currently held by Republicans but the current incumbents in the 5th and 21st Senate Districts are not running for reelection. In the 17th Senate GOP incumbent Sen. Howard Marklein faces Democratic challenger Rep. Jenna Jacobson. As for the Assembly, only two of the seats are open, the 21st and 53rd.
A week after the August 11th primary, it reported spending $58,500 for online ads scheduled to run between August 18th and August 24th to support Crowley.
Spring Election
Toward the end of the first week in March, the group reported spending in the 2026 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election with about $3,900 going towards printing costs to support Dane County Court of Appeals Judge Chris Taylor for the high court. She faced Waukesha County Court of Appeals Judge Maria Lazar for an open seat on the officially nonpartisan court in the April 7th election. A former Democratic state legislator, she was supported by liberal groups, while Lazar was backed by conservatives and first gained her current position with the help of independent spending by conservative groups. Liberal control of the officially nonpartisan, seven-member court expanded from four to five seats with Taylor's election victory.
At the end of the second week in March, Half Court Political Fund reported spending about another $860 to cover printing costs in the high court race.
Two weeks before the election, the group reported spending $15,000 for mobile gaming ads. At the end of the last full week in March, it reported about another $1,800, the bulk of that going towards outdoor advertising.
Eight days before the election, Half Court Political Fund reported another $15,000 devoted to online advertising. Two days later, it reported about $75 for event tabling expenses.
The day of the election, the committee reported spent about $1,370* for phones/texting and volunteer meals.
In July, the committee reported it had spent nearly $4,600 for miscellaneous printing costs two days after the April 1st election.
*Changed from the original report to account for a later amendment filed by the committee.
Last active election: 2025
This organization is registered with the Wisconsin Ethics Commission as an independent expenditure committee following the January 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC.