WASHINGTON – A poll commissioned by Democrat Janet Cooke supporters puts her ahead of first-term Congressman Derrick Van Orden, a Trump Republican seeking re-election from western Wisconsin. Cooke led 49% to 47%, albeit with a five-point margin of error. The race is being watched closely as a measure of ex-President Donald Trump’s own prospects in the largely rural region. Both sides have invested millions of dollars in television ad buys in Eau Claire, LaCrosse and Madison. The new poll results were announced by the Democratic-aligned House Majority Political Action Committee, along with information as to its validity: The polling firm GBAO surveyed 400 likely voters from September 8 to September 10.
Cooke. She has been a small business operator in Eau Claire and organized fellow women entrepreneurs. This is her second WI-3 campaign. She grew up on a dairy farm. Age 36. Her camapign theme: Fighting for working families.
Van Orden. Of Prairie du Chidn. Has cultivated a macho persona as a biker and a Navy Seal veteran. Age 55. He’s presence n the news has been jagged. Last vear he went on a drunken rage against teen-age Congressional pages in the Capitol rotunda after hours. He was at the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, although he lied about being there until photos surfaced. This year he went uninvited and unauthorized lone-wolf mission to Israel, ostensibly to advise the military leadership on its Gaza war.