Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

July 29, 2026

Fall: Oath • Spending

Based in Clear Lake, Wisconsin, Keep Polk County Rural first registered to make independent expenditures in Wisconsin state elections in January 2024. It subsequently spent about $10,000 in the 2024 spring elections and over $18,000 in the 2024 fall elections to elect Republican Duke Tucker to the Wisconsin State Assembly. The group’s registered treasurer in 2024 was former state legislator and 2022 primary candidate for attorney general Adam Jarchow.

In the first half of 2026, the group raised $12,000. Jarchow accounted for $4,000 of that and the remainder came from Chris Nelson, a home contractor based in Balsam Lake. Most of that $12,000 went to independent expenditures in two Polk County Board races this spring, leaving a cash balance just under $400 by the end of June.

Keep Polk County Rural first reported independent expenditures in the 2026 fall partisan state elections, two weeks out from the August 11^th primary elections. The group spent about $5,000 for mailers opposing former Wisconsin State Rep Angie Sapik in the 25^th State Senate District’s GOP primary. Sapik’s opponent in the primary, Erik Severson, formerly served in the Wisconsin State Assembly over a decade ago. The winner of the primary faces Democratic opposition for the open seat in the November election. The current incumbent, GOP Sen. Romaine Quinn is running in a another senate district due to new legislative district maps passed in 2024.

Last active state 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.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: July 31, 2026
Updated: August 8, 2026

Fall: Oath • Spending

Fight For Our Rights PAC is a federally registered committee based in Texas used by Fight For Our Rights, a LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, to oppose anti-gay and anti-trans officials in state legislative elections nationwide. It was first active in Iowa’s 2022 state legislative elections and first active in Wisconsin in the fall 2024 elections.

Less than two weeks, before the August 11th primaries, the committee reported spending about $26,800 for online advertising and mailers to support the primary challenger to Russell Antonio Goodwin, Sr., the Democratic incumbent in the 12th Assembly District.* The winner of the primary faces no opposition in November.

A week before the primary, it reported spending nearly $8,300 for mailing costs to oppose the Democratic incumbent in the 12th Assembly District* primary and support his opponent.

Four days before the primary, it reported spending over another $14,400 for online advertising and mailers to oppose and Goodwin and support his opponent.*

*Note: The committee's reports consistently misidentify the supported candidate as the Republican challenger in the 45th Assembly District  - Jocelyn Jordan as opposed to Jordan Roman in the 12th - but claims spending was in the 12th, which seems more likely. he fact that, with the filing of its second spending report the committee explicitly opposes the Democratic incumbent, reinforces that assumption. 

Last active election: 2024

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

July 31, 2026

Fall: Oath • Spending

This is the political action committee (PAC) used by the Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association (MTEA), the union that represents Milwaukee public school teachers, to make campaign contributions. MTEA is an affiliate of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), the largest teachers’ union in the state. 

Less than two weeks before the August 11th primary, the committee reported spending $5,000 for online advertising to support Democratic incumbent Rep. Ryan Clancy in the 19th Assembly. Clancy faces a challenger in the primary and, should he win, a Republican opponent in November. Payment was made to Working Families Party PAC, another committee making independent expenditures in this year's elections.

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.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: August 6, 2026
Updated: August 11, 2026

Fall: Oath • Spending

This is a Brookfield-based group that supports Republican candidates in Wisconsin legislative and statewide elections. Between the time it first surfaced in 2010 and 2024, the organization spent over an estimated $5.6 million on issue ads and independent expenditures combined in Wisconsin state elections, although 2018 was the last time it used issue ads to advance its goals. Former GOP Assembly Speaker Scott Jensen, who was disgraced in the caucus scandal at the beginning of the century, when it was still possible to have a political scandal and be disgraced by one, helped create the group. 

The group first reported independent spending in the 2026 fall state partisan elections the first week of August, less than a week out from the August 11^th primaries. It spent $25,150 on mailers and telephone communications to oppose one of three candidates in the 61^st Assembly District Democratic primary, Ben Brist. The primary winner faces Republican incumbent Rep. Bob Donovan in November. Donovan was first elected to the legislature in 2022, but, thanks new redistricting maps enacted in 2024, was only elected to his current seat in the last general election two years ago.

The day before the August primaries, Jobs First reported spending $7,050 for online advertising and phone calls/texts to support 8th Assembly District Democratic incumbent Rep. Syliva Ortiz-Velez against her primary challenger. The winner of the primary faces Republican Angel Sanchez in November. This is the fourth time since 2020 Sanchez has made a run in this district.

Last active election: 2024

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.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: August 22, 2026
Updated: August 25, 2026

Fall: Oath • Spending

The Washington D.C.-based AFL-CIO uses the Working America committee to make independent expenditures in Wisconsin elections. This committee was first active in the fall 2022 election, but the union used a registered committee by the same name to make independent expenditures in the 2011 and 2012 recall and fall elections. In the 2016 fall elections, it used another committee called Working America Coalition. That committee, like the current one, operated as an unregistered committee, meaning it was not required to report its income sources to the state.

The group first reported spending in Wisconsin's fall partisan state elections ten days after the August 11th primaries with over $25,500 on campaign staff to support Democratic candidate for governor, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, and to his oppose his Republican opponent, Congressman Tom Tiffany. Two-term incumbent Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is not running for reelection.

A few days later it reported spending nearly another $4,100 for campaign staff in the governor's race.

Last active election: 2025

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: February 5, 2026
Updated: May 4, 2026

This is the issue ad arm of a Monona-based group that supports Democratic and left-leaning candidates for legislative and statewide offices.

Unlike the group’s independent expenditure arm of nearly the same name, A Better Wisconsin Together Political Fund, phony issue ad groups do not have to report their fundraising and spending activities on elections to the state. However, between 2010 and 2025, the independent expenditure arm alone reported spending about $29 million in state level elections, meaning the group's combined spending on issue ads and independent expenditures must have been well north of $30 million in that period.

Fall Election

At the beginning of May, A Better Wisconsin started running an issue ad campaign against the presumptive Republican nominee for governor, Congressman Tom Tiffany. A member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, Tiffany has been endorsed by President Donald Trump. The group’s ad starts by asking if Tiffany is a MAGA extremist and then proceeds to answer the question by listing issues on which Tiffany has taken pro-Trump or far-right positions. Each item in the list is punctuated by footage of Tiffany saying “You betcha,” footage taken from Tiffany’s first campaign ad that started running in mid-April. The ad ends by urging viewers to call Tiffany and tell him he’s too extreme for Wisconsin.

The governor’s races this fall is open, as the incumbent, two-term Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is not running for reelection.  The primary is on August 11 and the general election November 3. Candidates cannot quality for placement on the primary ballot until June.

Spring Election

At the beginning of February, the organization started a digital ad campaign in the Wisconsin State Supreme Court election with two ads critical of Court of Appeals Judge Maria Lazar, the conservative candidate for the high court. One of the ads criticized Lazar for supporting bans on books and teaching about slavery in schools while another attacked her for approving the overturning of abortion rights. Both ads end by urging the view to call Lazar and tell he she's wrong. The word "vote" is never used in either. The Waukesha-based Lazar faced fellow Court of Appeals Judge Chris Taylor for an open seat on the court, a seat vacated by a member of the court's three-seat conservative minority. Taylor, a former Democratic state legislator, won the election and gave liberals a 5-2 majority on the officially nonpartisan court.

At the end of February, A Better Wisconsin premiered at least three more issue ads appearing on YouTube and, presumably, in other venues as well. One ad praises Taylor for supporting victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault with an emphasis on access to emergency contraceptives. The other two ads are critical of Lazar, one for approving the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe and the other for siding with polluters. All three end by providing phone numbers and urging voters to call the judges, to thank Taylor and to criticize Lazar. The issues emphasized by the ads are similar to those stressed by another issue ad group active in the 2026 high court campaign, Justice Project Action.

About a week into March, the group started running another issue ad specfically praising Taylor for her position on abortion rights.

In mid-March, the group first reported making independent expenditures in the campaign through A Better Wisconsin Together Poltical Fund.

 Last active election: 2025

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2026

February 23, 2026

Little is known for certain about Justice Project Action. An organization by that name contributed to a 527 group backing Democratic candidates in the 2024 Michigan State Supreme Court election, Justice for All – Michigan, and distributed “nonpartisan voter guides” about the candidates. Justice Project Acton appears to be associated with the federally registered Justice Project, which bills itself as "a nonpartisan organization dedicated to fighting injustice and to creating a more humane and just world," and founded by war veterans. This is the second time the group has been active in Wisconsin state elections, the first time was in 2025 when it supported the liberal candidate in that year's high court election.

As in  2025, Justice Project Action is responsible for a “nonpartisan voter guide." This year's guide compares the two court candidates based on their endorsements and their relative positions on abortion and on the environment. The mailer includes a QR code that takes the user to the Wisconsin Decides website. The guide and website both avoid making an explicit endorsement of either candidate, so reporting spending on these phony voter guides and issue ads is not required by state law. The mailer is confirmed to have been mailed in Madison and Waukesha. 

Madison-baed State Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor faces her Waukesha-based colleagueudge Maria Lazar in the April 7th election for an open seat on the state’s highest court. Since 2023, liberals have enjoyed a 4-3 majority on the officially nonpartisan court. With the retirement of conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley, a win by Taylor in this open seat would grow the liberal majority on the officially nonpartisan to 5-2.

In 2025 a committee called simply The Justice Project, sharing the same address as the federally registered committee of the same name, made independent expenditures in that year's court election. At the time of this posting, that committee is listed as "terminated" by the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. That means it is not currently active.

Last active election: 2025

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: March 19, 2026
Updated: March 23, 2026

Based in Shorewood, Wisconsin, the Wisco Project, Inc. was started in 2024 and operates a bare-bones website that does not provide much information other than that the organization intends to mobilize students in the 2026 election. The group operates a super PAC at the federal level and is active in the 2026 Wisconsin State Supreme Court as an unregistered independent expenditure committee called Wisco Project PAC. The Wisco Project PAC first reported making independent expenditures at the beginning of March.

In mid-February, about two weeks before it first reported making independent expenditures, the group started running an issue ad on Facebook criticizing Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Maria Lazar for permitting a rideshare driver to continue driving after sexually assaulting a passenger. The ad's narrator - whose voice is electroncially distorted to sound menacing - says, “We need to keep Wisconsin safe” and urges the viewer to call Lazar and tell her “Wisconsin can’t stand for her soft on assault attitude.” By avoiding the word vote, the group was able to avoid reporting this spending to the state as an independent expenditure. Furthermore, payment for the ad is credited at the end to the Wisco Project, Inc. not its similarly named independent expenditure committee.

Another ad by the group started appearing on YouTube just a little over two weeks before the April 7th election. The ad claims Lazar sided with PFAS polluting corporations over the people of Wisconsin and works with the right-wing Federalist Society. The ad concludes by urging viewers to call the judge with their objections to her positions.

Fifteen days before the election, another ad by the group started running on YouTube. This one features a young woman in a phone-video criticizing Lazar's position on abortion rights. The ad concludes, like the others, by telling the viewer to call Lazar.

Lazar, of Waukesha, faces fellow Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Chris Taylor for a vacant seat on the state’s highest court. Based in Madison, Taylor served in the Wisconsin State Assembly as a Democrat before joining the bench. Lazar was first elected to her current position with substantial independent backing from conservative groups. A Taylor victory would expand liberal control from four to five seats on the officially nonpartisan, seven-member court.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Updated: June 22, 2026
Posted: July 20, 206

Based in Madison, Wisconsin Forward Fund is a new group that first registered with the state as a corporation in February 2026. Its only known address is a Madison post office box, and nothing is known about its personnel or sources of income. According to the group’s website, its goals are to promote "quality health care, real economic opportunity, and common-sense policy that puts working people first."

In Mid-May, the group first started running an online ad to support Democratic Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez for governor. The ad quickly runs through the high points of her biography and stresses her support for expanded health care and reproductive freedoms. A month later, it started running a second ad along the same lines, but this time it compares her favorably to her likely Republican opponent, U.S. Congressman Tom Tiffany. Neither ad tells the viewer explicitly to vote for Rodriguez, which would qualify the ads as independent expenditures and require the group to report its spending to the state. At the same time, neither ad admonishes the view to phone either Rodriguez or Tiffany, the usual ploy taken by “issue ad” groups.

In addition to the it's two online ads, the group's website includes a page detailing Rodriguez's health care plans.

Rodriguez faced six other Democrats who hope to succeed outgoing Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in the August 11th primary. She suspended her campaign about mid-July.

Hijacking Campaign 2026 | Campaign 2026

Posted: July 16, 2026
Updated: August 21, 2026

Protect Our Wisconsin is an issue ad group backed by the Democratic Governors Association (DGA), a Washington, D.C. based organization that works to promote Democrats for governor nationwide. This is the third such group that the organization has used in Wisconsin state elections in the last ten years, the other two being A Stronger Wisconsin in 2018 and the Alliance for Common Sense in 2022.

A little over a week into July, Protecting Our Wisconsin introduced two ads portraying U.S. Congressman, and Republican aspirant for governor, Tom Tiffany as a MAGA extremist. The first ad attacks Tiffany for trying to ban abortion and limiting access to birth control while the second says he supported the January 6th rioters and that he wanted to overturn the 2020 Wisconsin election results in favor of President Trump. According to one report, the group had already spent $477,000 on television ad buys as of July 8th.

A member of the House Freedom Caucus, Tiffany was endorsed by  President Trump's long before the August 11th primary where he faced only token opposition. Meanwhile, seven candidates appeared on the Democratic primary ballot, although three of those has dropped out of the race by the time of the primary.. Democratic incumbent Gov. Tony Evers is not seeking reelection.

After the primary, Protect Our Wisconsin started running a new ad portraying Tiffany as a "legislative terrorist" with a MAGA agenda.

A second ad, contrasts Tiffany with his Democratic opponent Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. It calls Tiffany a MAGA extremist who has raised costs for average people while Crowley actually has a plan to reduce them. According to one report, the group has reserved $2.7 million in ad time starting as of the August primary.