Democratic Gov. Tony Evers raised about $760,000 during the first six months of 2025, well shy of the nearly $5.3 million he raised during the same period in his reelection bid four years ago.
It’s unclear whether Evers will run again for governor. Throughout the year, he’s said an announcement would come after work on Wisconsin’s state budget was finished. That happened in the early morning hours of July 3 on the heels of a bipartisan deal with state lawmakers.
As Democrats and Republicans wait for an answer, Evers’ fundraising total from the first six months of 2025 raises more questions. From the beginning of January to the end of June, his campaign brought in $757,215. That’s just a fraction of the $5,275,701 Evers raised during the same period in his successful reelection campaign.
Evers’ campaign has been active. This year, it’s spent $806,425 on expenses like campaign consultants.
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The lag in fundraising also comes at a time when Democrats were focused on Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race, which shattered national spending records for a judicial race. That election saw liberal Justice-elect Susan Crawford win a 10-year term on the court to preserve its liberal majority.
Still, as of June 30, Evers reported having about $2 million in the bank. At the same time in his last election cycle, he had $7 million.
Jessica Taylor, an editor for the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, cautioned against reading too much into Evers’ fundraising this early.
“He is the sitting governor,” Taylor told WPR. “And I think if he did decide to go all in on reelection, that those numbers would quickly turn around.”
In GOP primary, Bill Berrien gets fundraising boost from the Winklevoss twins
In the GOP primary for governor, Republican businessman and former Navy SEAL Bill Berrien got off to a quick start with the help of $1 million in donations from cryptocurrency investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.
It’s been just more than a week since Berrien officially announced his campaign for governor. During his first campaign video, Berrien aligned himself with President Donald Trump and stated he’ll “shake up Madison” in the same way that Trump has shaken up Washington.
A political action committee formed by Berrien reported raising $1,158,127 between it’s launch in April and June 30. The vast majority of that came from matching $500,000 donations from the billionaire brothers known as the Winklevoss twins, who founded a cryptocurrency company called Gemini and became known for their lawsuit against Mark Zuckerberg claiming he’d stolen the idea for Facebook from a social networking website they created.
Last year, the Winklevoss brothers donated a combined $2 million worth of bitcoin to then-candidate Trump. But fundraising records show Cameron Winklevoss also gave substantial donations to Democratic candidates like former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Berrien’s PAC ended the fundraising period with $997,600 in the bank. Earlier this week, he announced a $400,000 ad buy, the first of the 2026 governor’s race.
The other Republican in the race for governor, Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann, was the first candidate to officially launch his campaign. Since then, his social media has been filled with posts about campaign visits across Wisconsin.
On the fundraising front, however, he trails Evers and Berrien. Between his May 1 announcement and the end of June, he reported raising $424,144 and spending $85,905. Schoemann’s campaign reported having $338,239 in the bank.
Berrien, who raised his money through a PAC, has yet to report traditional campaign finance donations, having formally launched his candidacy after the end of the reporting period.
Wisconsin’s Democratic and Republican parties nearly tied in 2025 fundraising
On the heels of a Wisconsin Supreme Court race that broke national spending records, the state’s two major political parties reported very similar totals this year.
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s main fundraising arm reported raising $13,644,838 as of June 30. During the same period it spent $13,893,379 and ended with $402,028 in the bank.
The Republican Party of Wisconsin raised $13,055,218 as of June 30. During the same period it spent $13,238,278 and finished with $490,197 in the bank.
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