Wisconsin Democrat David Crowley dropped out of the governor's on July 8, citing polls that showed him only getting about five percent among all the Democrats running for office. When he did so, he endorsed Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez. But just 10 days later, Crowley was back in the race after Sara Rodriguez's campaign imploded over problems with financial disclosures and the firing of her campaign manager.
Crowley went on to win a very narrow primary race against Democratic Socialist Francesca Hong.
But now a whistleblower is saying that David Crowley was given $250,000 to drop out of the race and endorse Rodriguez. There was also reportedly a promise of a job for Crowley's wife, Ericka.
NEW: A Democrat insider has alleged that Wisconsin's Democrat gubanatorial candidate first cut a deal to drop out and endorse a rival in exchange for $250,000 and a job for his wife. After his rival's campaign imploded, he got back in: https://t.co/jh3c1WScYD
— Leif Le Mahieu (@leif_lemahieu) October 23, 2026
Democrat David Crowley, who dropped out of the race in July only to step back in and emerge victorious weeks later, was persuaded by hundreds of thousands of dollars and a promise of a job for his wife, according to a longtime Democrat operative and corroborating materials reviewed exclusively by The Daily Wire.
Crowley struck a deal with Lieutenant Governor Sara Rodriguez as part of an effort to consolidate the vote against socialist candidate Francesca Hong, according to the political operative with first-hand knowledge of the events. The advisor, familiar with the Rodriguez campaign’s internal discussions, said that the deal involved Crowley exiting the race and endorsing Rodriguez in exchange for the transfer of $250,000 to his political coffers and a guaranteed role for his wife in a future Rodriguez administration.
“The Crowley campaign made clear that David Crowley would not endorse Lieutenant Governor Rodriguez unless significant funds were promised for his campaign account or for his future political activities,” the senior Democrat advisor said, adding that a paid position was guaranteed for his wife Ericka.
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Dan O'Donnell, a Milwaukee radio host and founder of The Heartland Post, exercised caution over these claims, and he was correct to urge skepticism. As O'Donnell pointed out, the claim comes from one source — that "longtime Democrat operative" who provided "corroborating materials" that were not published or quoted in the Daily Wire story.
My latest at @HeartlandPostWI: Obviously you should be skeptical about a report that David Crowley was offered $250k to drop out of the primary, but Dems clearly bribed his running mate in 2022 and extorted Mandela Barnes to drop out earlier this year. https://t.co/uyW873ME6L
— Dan O'Donnell (@DanODonnellShow) October 25, 2026
"That simply would not pass many publications’ editorial or legal vetting (including the Heartland Post’s)," O'Donnell wrote. But what he does lay out is the "sordid and very, very recent past" of the Wisconsin Democrat Party, which includes revelations that Ericka Crowley was first hired by Community Advocates when David Crowley was elected Milwaukee County Executive, and then received a promotion after Crowley steered tens of millions of dollars in federal rental assistance grants to Community Advocates.
And O'Donnell recalls how, in 2022, Sarah Godlewski — David Crowley's running mate — was serving as State Treasurer when she opted not to run for reelection and instead ran for the Senate against Republican Ron Johnson. But the Democrats wanted then-Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes to face Johnson, so before the August 9 primary (and after both mail-in and early voting had started), Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson dropped out of the race and endorsed Barnes. So did Alex Lasry, an executive with the Milwaukee Bucks. Godlewski also dropped out on July 29. That left her out of elected office.
But in March 2023, Secretary of State Doug LaFollette retired abruptly and Gov. Tony Evers appointed Godlewski to fill his seat. That news dropped, O'Donnell notes, on Friday, March 17 so it would get very little traction in the news cycle.
In Wisconsin, the Secretary of State position is largely powerless and of little influence. O'Donnell points out that when Godlewski announced her campaign for lieutenant governor, no other Democrat jumped in the race, even though there were almost a dozen Democrats vying for governor.
"It was patently obvious that Godlewski was promised the lieutenant governor nomination as part of the deal she struck for dropping out of the 2022 Senate race. Bribery, therefore, is not exactly unheard of in Wisconsin Democratic primaries," O'Donnell wrote.
But yesterday, a whistleblower signed an affidavit that Crowley requested the $250,000 and a job for his wife.
A huge update to the David Crowley bribery bombshell. A whistleblower has now signed an affidavit that Crowley requested $250,000 and a job for his wife to drop out of the race. We dive into the latest at 3:06.
— Dan O'Donnell (@DanODonnellShow) October 26, 2026
There's also another aspect to this story that local mainstream media seems uninterested in looking into. Did Crowley know his wife's employment at Community Advocates would end when he finished his term as Milwaukee County Executive in 2028?
— RightWI (@RightWI1776) October 24, 2026🚨 There's a MASSIVE buried lede in the $250k Crowley Corruption story.
Crowley was willing to sell his endorsement for $250k AND a guarantee his wife, Ericka, would receive employment in the Sara Rodriguez administration.
Ericka works at Community Advocate, the nonprofit that… https://t.co/Pe3It89UZF
The post reads:
Ericka works at Community Advocate, the nonprofit that received tens of millions of dollars from Milwaukee County while Crowley was (and is) Milwaukee County Executive.
Why would Crowley make his wife's future employment a key term of the Rodriguez endorsement? Did Crowley know that Ericka's employment at Community Advocates would end when Crowley finished his term as MKE County Executive in 2028? If so, why?
Could it be that the Community Advocates is only employing Ericka because her husband routes tens of millions of dollars to them, and they have no need for Ericka once Crowley is out of power? Hence, Crowley is lining up future employment for Ericka now?
I don't think these two stories are unrelated. His wife's employment is a key component of both corruption stories.
That is speculation, of course, but Wisconsin voters deserve answers. Especially in a race where David Crowley has accused his Republican opponent of being "bought" by billionaire donors when it seems Crowley may have taken money and the promise of a job for his wife in exchange for dropping out of the race back in July.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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