Ryan Strnad, who promoted recycling when he announced earlier this summer that he would seek the Democratic nomination to run for governor, ended his campaign Tuesday. (Photo by Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner)

Democratic hopeful Ryan Strnad, an American Family Field beer vendor from Mukwonago, announced Tuesday he is ending his campaign for governor. 

“I want to thank every person who supported this campaign,” Strnad said in a statement. “I ran to give working class families a voice and to deliver results for communities that have long been overlooked.”

Strnad launched his campaign for the Democratic nomination in August, acknowledging  he was polarizing and a longshot for the position. He told the Examiner at the start of his campaign that his mother thought he should “run for something smaller.”

He launched his campaign saying that he would seek to improve conditions for workers by repealing Act 10 and getting rid of “right to work” — the law that lets workers who are represented by unions decline to pay union dues without giving up their right to the union’s representation. He said he supported police and allowing access to abortion in Wisconsin. 

Strnad said he is endorsing Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley in the crowded race and encouraged his supporters to support him as well. He said Crowley “is the candidate who can hit the ground running, fight for families, and begin delivering those results for Wisconsin starting on day one.”

Other Democratic hopefuls include Lt. Gov. Sarah Rodriguez, state Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison), state Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison) and former Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation CEO Missy Hughes.

Wisconsin State Capitol (Wisconsin Examiner photo)

Former state Rep. Brett Hulsey, known for controversial behavior in the Wisconsin Assembly, has joined the crowded Democratic field for governor in 2026.

“I am running for governor to make Wisconsin better for my family and yours. My grandkids and yours deserve the best schools, roads and clean lakes and beaches,” Hulsey said in his campaign announcement last week.

Hulsey represented Middleton in the state Legislature from 2011 to 2015. Prior to that, he served on the Dane County Board for 14 years, including chairing the Dane County Personnel and Finance Committee.

While in the Assembly, Hulsey was cited for disorderly conduct after police accused him of flipping a 9-year-old boy off his inner tube and taking pictures of him at a Madison beach. He also used $1,200 in campaign funds in 2013 to buy himself a 1987 Volkswagen Cabriolet, which he said he was going to use for parades and campaigning.

Hulsey decided not to run for reelection in the Assembly in 2014 so he could run for governor in 2014. He came in a distant second in the Democratic primary to Mary Burke. 

During his last campaign, Hulsey made national headlines for his plan to go to the 2014 Wisconsin Republican Convention in Milwaukee, dress up as a confederate soldier and hand out Ku Klux Klan hoods as a way of highlighting the policies of then-Gov. Scott Walker, which he said were racist.

Hulsey, a former teacher, cited his outspoken opposition to Act 10, a Walker-era law that stripped teachers and other public employees of collective bargaining rights, as a  reason he decided to run. 

“Attacks on teachers and cuts to school investment are coming home to roost with lower school performance. I will invest in our kids, schools, teachers, and support staff,” Hulsey said. 

Since his time in office, Hulsey has run the housing, energy and environmental consulting business Better Environmental Solutions LLC. 

Hulsey joins a growing group of Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls.

Candidates who have announced so far include Lt. Gov. Sarah Rodriguez, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, state Sen. Kelda Roys, state Rep. Francesca Hong, former Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation CEO Missy Hughes and Mukwonago beer vendor Ryan Strnad. 

The primary for governor is scheduled for August 2026.

Republicans in the race include U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann.