Rebecca Cooke is challenging incumbent Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R). Rep. Van Orden is known as a hothead in Congress and underperformed President Trump in the 2024 matchup with Cooke. Van Orden defeated Cooke by 3% while Trump carried the district by 7%.
There is a strong chance to flip this seat in 2026. Cooke expended a lot of her resources during the primary last year, which she ultimately won by 9%. It is clear this will be one of the more competitive elections in the country in 2026 and President Trump included Rep. Van Orden in his first round of endorsements for vulnerable incumbents this cycle.
Rebecca Cooke was born and raised in the district as the daughter of dairy farmers. She worked throughout high school and at University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she did a work-study for a nonprofit supporting low-income families. She then worked to help elect Democrats across the country before becoming a small-business owner in Eau Claire. She also founded a nonprofit in 2016 to support and empower other female entrepreneurs.
Cooke is backed by both the New Democrat and Blue Dog coalitions. She also has endorsements from Emily’s List, End Citizens United and a number of unions, alongside national leaders like Sens. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Cooke is pragmatic and ready to work on commonsense solutions to our national security issues. She opposes new types of nuclear weapons and is ready to promote oversight over Pentagon programs to benefit hard-working Wisconsin families.
