Former Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes joins crowded 2026 gubernatorial race, becoming the 20th candidate to enter what promises to be a busy Democratic primary.
If Barnes wants to be the next governor, he will have to overcome significant historical odds. No statewide candidate has made a comeback to win after losing a statewide November general election race in 50 years. Barnes has won three out of four statewide elections; however, no lieutenant governor has been elected governor since Patrick Lucey first accomplished it in 1970.
A day after his defeat in the 2022 U.S. Senate race, Barnes received an encouraging call from former President Barack Obama.
"I had a conversation with Barack Obama. He called me and we talked about the race that he lost for Congress before his US Senate race, and it was an important conversation to me because it sort of gave me an idea of sense of, you know, what needed to come next," Barnes said.
When asked about Obama's best advice, Barnes responded: "So I'll say the best advice he gave was, you know, to stay involved."
Watch: Mandela Barnes on why he's running for governor
Barnes is now involved in another big race. TMJ4 caught up with him at Green Homeowners United in West Allis, where he was discussing energy-efficient needs and financial assistance. He also shared his perspective on his own financial struggles as an adult starting out in life.
"I've been on energy assistance. I've been on food share, been on unemployment," Barnes said.
"It's absolutely shaped my understanding of the issue because sometimes people just need to be able to get by. Tough times fall on people," Barnes said.
Barnes plans to lean on his experience during Governor Tony Evers' first term.
"Governor Evers put me to work, over the course of those years, this was participating in budget cycles, two consecutive budget cycles, also working right alongside for pandemic relief, and Wisconsin fortunately had one of the strongest bounce-backs in the entire country," Barnes said.
Republicans will likely point out that Barnes comes with a liberal agenda that voters rejected in 2022. On the current immigration debate around ICE, Barnes offered a nuanced position.
"In this state, when it comes to ICE, look, if a person has been convicted of a violent crime or a person has committed a violent crime, they're not in this country legally, of course, that person should be deported," Barnes said.
However, he's not in favor of efforts to arrest and deport just anyone here illegally.
"They are plucking people from our communities who are just trying to make a livelihood, and also doing the work to improve life for other people. They're contributing to society," Barnes said.
When asked how he would demonstrate bipartisan leadership as governor, Barnes pointed to popular policy positions.
"I wish that the legislature would take into account what people in this state have been asking for it - It's like 80% of people support Medicaid expansion. There's no reason we're one of 9 states. That's bipartisan," Barnes said.
Barnes is the third person connected to Evers' time in office to run for governor, but Evers says he will not make a primary endorsement.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated to clarify that no statewide candidate has made a comeback to win after losing a statewide November general election race in 50 years. Candidates have won after losing in a previous primary.
This story was reported on-air by Charles Benson and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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