MADISON, Wis. (AP) – After President Donald Trump lost his candidacy for re-election, most Senate Republicans, his Department of Justice and the courts rejected or contested his baseless allegations about a “stolen election”. Not Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson.
The Republican senator used his presidency of the Senate Homeland Security Committee to highlight Trump’s allegations, claiming that millions of Americans “have real and legitimate suspicions that this election has been stolen” and concerned about “so many irregularities here”.
That kind of loyalty to Trump has made Johnson dear to the far-right base in his state, but it can be costly if he decides to pursue a third term in 2022. As Johnson ponders whether to run again, his adherence to Trump’s undemocratic campaign for nullifying the election results has already angered some Republican allies and is designed to motivate Democrats who opposed Trump to gain new strength in the state.
Observers note that Johnson, who left the tea party movement more than a decade ago, often behaved like a senator from a completely red state. But the November election demonstrated that Wisconsin, which Democrat Joe Biden won by less than 21,000 votes, is anything but. The fight for his spot will be one of the most disputed races of next year.
“I think if the election was a week from now, he would be in a world of pain,” said Fond du Lac County Republican Party president Rohn Bishop. Bishop criticized Republican colleagues like Johnson, who parroted allegations of illegal electoral activity, although he remains a supporter of Johnson. But he notes that Johnson is at risk of losing moderate voters, essential to victory.
“It can hurt you with suburban voters. … The election has not been stolen and it is difficult to convince people that they should vote for you when you try to throw away your legally released ballots.”
Johnson has long been aligned with Trump’s policies and hardline policies. He led the effort to investigate Biden’s son Hunter and rarely broke with the White House. Still, some Republicans were surprised to see the senator giving credit to Trump’s post-election schemes, which included an attempt to withdraw the ballots of 238,000 voters in the Democratic-majority areas of Milwaukee and Madison.
Johnson’s December 16 hearing to examine unfounded claims of electoral fraud largely perpetuated Trump’s unfounded allegations. And on January 6, just before the US Capitol was invaded, Johnson opposed the counting of votes at the Arizona Electoral College.
The conservative editor of Right Wisconsin published a scathing column hours before the uproar, saying Johnson was on an “imprudent path” in questioning the integrity of the election and that he should retire and lose if he ran again.
After the riot, Johnson did not vote to object. Still, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin’s largest newspaper, asked Johnson to step down for “fueling an uprising.”
Johnson responded with a column in the newspaper calling the editorial “unbalanced and uninformed”. The Journal Sentinel took the rare step of writing down its response, providing 19 footnotes with additional context, fact checking and corrections.
The Wisconsin State Journal, the state’s second largest newspaper, also called for Johnson’s resignation, and the anti-Trump Republicans behind The Lincoln Project pointed Johnson to defeat, citing his support for electoral conspiracy theories and comparing him to former Wisconsin USA dishonored Sen. Joe McCarthy.
Johnson remains popular among Republican Party bases, a key factor as he ponders whether to run again, said Republican Party strategist Brian Reisinger, who worked on Johnson’s 2016 campaign. He noted that Johnson was able to overcome opponents who did not give him much of a chance to win, first against then-current US Senator Russ Feingold in 2010 and again in a 2016 rematch.
“There are a lot of people who look at Ron Johnson and see the political durability he has had over the years, even though he was once dead walking twice,” said Reisinger.
Johnson in 2016 promised not to seek a third term, but stepped back three years later, saying he wanted to see what the 2020 elections would look like. He also said he is considering running for governor in 2022.
Johnson, 65, said in recent weeks that he has not yet made a decision.
“My prejudice has always been (serving) two terms and returning home,” Johnson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last month, before Democrats won two runoff elections in Georgia to take majority control of the Senate. “That remains my preference, but at the same time, the Senate is a kind of barrier against total control by Democrats, which would, I think, be a very bad thing for this country.”
Johnson and his spokesman Ben Voelkel declined to comment on his plans.
Republicans already have three Senate seats to defend. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Rob Portman of Ohio said they will not run again in 2022. Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, who turns 89 in 2022, is also on the ballot, and Missouri with two terms Republican Roy Blunt did not say whether to seek a third party.
If Johnson retires, it will probably be a dispute on all sides.
Several Republicans intend to run for the Senate or the governor, depending on what Johnson does. Potential Republican candidates for the Senate include US Representative Mike Gallagher, former US Representative Sean Duffy and Kevin Nicholson, who lost the Republican primaries in 2018 in the Senate.
The list of Democratic candidates includes Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, the state’s first black vice governor, treasurer Sarah Godlewski and state senator Chris Larson of Milwaukee.
Alex Lasry, the senior vice president of Milwaukee Bucks who helped lead the successful effort to obtain the 2020 Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee before the coronavirus sent the event almost entirely online, is also considering a run. Lasry is the son of billionaire hedge fund manager and Democratic packer Marc Lasry and can self-finance his run.
Another potential candidate is Steven Olikara, founder and chief executive of the non-profit organization Millennial Action Project. Outagamie County executive Tom Nelson has already declared his candidacy.