The race for Wisconsin’s governor is emerging as another high-profile proxy war between former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence, with the two visiting the state to stump for different candidates a week before the GOP primary election.
The former vice president arrived in Wisconsin on Wednesday to campaign alongside Rebecca Kleefisch, whom he endorsed for the Republican nomination for governor last week. The endorsement was only the third time Pence broke from the former president as Trump sought to elevate candidates who have supported his claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
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“Wisconsin and America need Rebecca Kleefisch to be the next governor of the great State of Wisconsin,” Pence said Wednesday.
Pence similarly broke from Trump in his endorsement for the GOP nomination in the Arizona governor’s race, setting up a high-profile showdown that has yet to be called. In the spring, the former White House duo also split when they backed different candidates for Georgia’s race for governor.
Kleefisch and Michels are set to face off in Wisconsin’s primary contest on Tuesday, with the winner facing incumbent Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in November.
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Wisconsin has emerged as a battleground state, as it’s one of a handful that secured President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020. Kleefisch and Michels have campaigned on promises to strengthen voter integrity, although both have stopped short of backing efforts to decertify the results of the 2020 election like Trump has suggested in the state.
Trump had pressured Pence to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which the former vice president refused to do.
