LACROSSE, Wis. — A well-connected LaCrosse Democrat, Tara Johnson, wants to unseat Derrick Van Orden as western Wisconsin’s member of Congress. Tara Johnson, former chair of the LaCrosse County Board, announced her candidacy for the WI-3 Democratic nomination. To run, she said she was resigning from executive board of the La Crosse County Democratic Party. “Politicians like Van Orden are taking us backward,” said Johnson. “I’ll always fight for access to safe, legal abortion rights, expanding access to more affordable health care and prescription drugs, and ensuring Social Security and Medicare are there for the generations who earned it.” Van Orden, a Republican and Trump enthusiast, has not yet announced whether he’ll seek a second term. In 2011 Johnson became the first woman to serve as LaCrosse County Board chair. She chose to not run for re-election in 2020. She is the third person to announce their candidacy for Democratic congressional nomination.
Johnson. Says Van Orden as failed to support veterans, even though he flaunts having once been a crack Navy SEAL. Her age: 61.
Verbatim
Johnson: “During his short time in Washington, Representative Van Orden has embarrassed us with his temper tantrums, joining insurrections at the Capitol on January 6, and voting again and again against real solutions that would cut costs and make life better for people in every corner of this district, Enough is enough. I can’t sit on the sidelines while our rights are being taken away and our Congressman cares more about the MAGA agenda than the people he claims to represent.”