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U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican front-runner in the 2026 race for Wisconsin governor, has a mixed record on statements fact-checked by Wisconsin Watch.

The northern Wisconsin congressman has been on target on some claims, such as low Wisconsin business rankings, the link between marijuana and psychosis, and a drop in Wisconsin reading scores.

Other assertions, including claims about tariffs, aid for Ukraine and vetting evacuees from Afghanistan, have been off.

Here’s a look.

Do some rankings put Wisconsin among the bottom 10 states in job creation and entrepreneurship?

Yes.

Wisconsin was among the bottom 10 states in job and business creation in two 2025 rankings, but fared better in others.

Tiffany made the bottom-10 claim Sept. 23, the day he announced his bid for governor.

Is there evidence linking marijuana use to psychosis?

Yes.

Peer-reviewed research has found links between marijuana use and psychosis — the loss of contact with reality, experienced as delusions or hallucinations.

The consensus is there is a clear association, but more research is needed to determine if there is causation.

In August, Tiffany called for more research on the link to inform legalization policy. 

Does Canada impose 200% tariffs on US dairy products?

No.

U.S.-Canadian trade of agricultural products, including dairy, is generally done without tariffs, which are taxes paid on imported goods.

Canada has set tariffs exceeding 200% for U.S. dairy products. 

But the tariffs are imposed only when the amount imported exceeds quotas, and the U.S. “has never gotten close to exceeding” quotas that would trigger Canada’s dairy tariffs, the International Dairy Foods Association said.

Tiffany made the 200% claim in March.

Does Mississippi rank higher than Wisconsin in fourth grade reading scores?

Yes.

Tiffany claimed that Wisconsin had “fallen behind” Mississippi in reading. 

In the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress assessment, issued every two years, Mississippi’s fourth grade public school students scored higher than Wisconsin’s in reading proficiency, though the ratings “were not significantly different.”

In 2022, 33% of Wisconsin fourth graders rated “at or above proficient” in reading, vs. 31% in Mississippi. In 2024, Wisconsin dropped to 31%; Mississippi rose to 32%.

Did the April 2024 US foreign aid package include millions of dollars for pensions in Ukraine?

No. 

A $95 billion U.S. aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, which President Joe Biden signed into law in April 2024, prohibits funds from being allocated to pensions in Ukraine.

Tiffany claimed that the law included “millions” for pensions in Ukraine. His office, pointing to a U.S. State Department news release, told Wisconsin Watch that Tiffany meant to say that previous U.S. aid packages funded Ukrainian pensions.

Did nearly 100,000 people in the Afghanistan evacuation come to the US unvetted?

No.

Following the Afghanistan evacuation that began in summer 2021, more than 76,000 Afghans came to the U.S. after being vetted, The Wall Street Journal reported.

All evacuees were brought to a military base in Europe or the Middle East, where U.S. officials collected fingerprints and biographical details and ran them through criminal and terrorism-related databases, the Journal reported.

In reviews, the Defense and Homeland Security departments found that not all evacuees were fully vetted.

Tiffany had claimed none were vetted.

Did the Biden administration change Title IX to allow transgender women to play women’s sports?

No.

Tiffany made the claim about changes the Biden administration made in 2024 to Title IX, a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools receiving federal funding.

The new rules protect students and employees from sex-based harassment and discrimination. The rules say future changes will address sex-separate athletic teams.

Did more than 100 people on the terrorist watchlist try to enter the US midway through the Biden administration?

Yes.

As of late October 2023, when Tiffany made his claim, more than 200 non-U.S. citizens on the federal terrorist watchlist had tried to enter the U.S. between legal ports of entry and were stopped by Border Patrol during the Biden administration.

The watchlist contains known or suspected terrorists and individuals “who represent a potential threat.”

Did Joe Biden join 20 phone calls with Hunter Biden’s business partners to ‘close these deals and enrich his family’?

No.

In making that claim, Tiffany cited a Wall Street Journal report on closed-door congressional testimony given by Devon Archer, a former Hunter Biden business associate, about Joe Biden participating with Hunter in about 20 phone calls when Biden was vice president.

The Journal quoted Republican Rep. James Comer as saying Archer testified that Joe Biden was put on the phone to help Hunter sell “the brand.” A transcript shows Archer testified that Joe and Hunter never discussed business on the calls.

Was it proved that Joe Biden received $5 million from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma?

No.

Information cited by Tiffany when he made that claim in 2023 contained only unverified intelligence that the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid Biden $5 million.

Did the FBI under Joe Biden label concerned parents who spoke at school board meetings ‘domestic terrorists’?

No.

We found no evidence to back Tiffany’s claim, made in 2023.

Here are some claims GOP gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany has made — and the facts is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

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Wisconsin was among the bottom 10 states in job and business creation in some 2025 rankings, but higher in others.

For starting a business, National Business Capital, a financier, ranked Wisconsin 42nd, citing high taxes and low available funding. Small-business publication Simplify LLC, whose analysis included new business and job creation rates, ranked Wisconsin 43rd. Wisconsin was ranked 35th by WalletHub and 34th by U.S. News & World Report.

More generally, CNBC ranked Wisconsin 21st for business. Wisconsin scored higher in infrastructure and cost of doing business, lower in quality of life and legal and regulatory burdens. Wisconsin also ranked 21st in a poll of CEOs and business owners on best states for business.

Critics say rankings have limited value or are misleading.

From January 2018 to January 2025, Wisconsin added 63,300 jobs, ranking 40th in job creation, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

• National Business Capital: The Best States to Start a Business in 2025
• SimplifyLLC: Research: Best and Worst States for New Businesses
• WalletHub: Best & Worst States to Start a Business 2025
• CNBC: America’s Top States for Business 2025: The full rankings
• Chief Executive: Texas, Florida And Tennessee Top Chief Executive’s 2025 Best & Worst States For Business Poll
• Camoin Associates: Reading Between the Lines: What State Business Rankings Really Tell Us
• Kauffman Indicators of Entreprenuership: FAQs
• Federal Reserve Bank Philadelphia: Early Benchmark Revisions of State Payroll Employment 2018-2025

Do some rankings put Wisconsin among the bottom 10 states in job creation and entrepreneurship? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany delivers a speech at his launch event in Wausau. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

WAUSAU — In his first event since launching his campaign for governor of Wisconsin, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany made the case for his governorship and promised the large crowd seated and standing around a barn on Wednesday that he’ll work hard to win in 2026.

The 2026 race will be the first open election for governor of Wisconsin in over 15 years as Gov. Tony Evers decided to retire at the end of his second term. Tiffany became the third Republican candidate in the race on Tuesday. Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann and Whitefish Bay manufacturer Bill Berrien are also running in the Republican primary for the office. The Democratic field is growing with at least six candidates so far. The primary is scheduled for August 2026.  

“We are making America great once again,” Tiffany, who stood in front of an American flag, told the crowd. “Now we need a governor that’s going to lead Wisconsin to prosperity. Are we going to be one of those states that chooses prosperity like Texas and Florida and Tennessee and Ohio or are we going to be one of the laggards like New York or California?”

Tiffany declared during his speech that he is “the leader” in the race as he called for people to join him in his work. 

“I will put every ounce of my energy into this… but I cannot do it alone,” Tiffany said. “I am going to need your help.” 

Berrien, who has never held elected office, criticized Tiffany as a “career politician” in a statement after his launch. 

“We need builders who will create prosperity for all through work, revitalize the manufacturing infrastructure that lies dormant in our state, and jumpstart our economy,” Berrien said. “As the only builder in this race, I’m the strongest general election candidate Democrats will face — and they know it!”

Schoemann, meanwhile, welcomed Tiffany to the race. 

“Looking forward to a Republican primary focused on ideas and winning back the governor’s office,” Schoemann said in a social media post on Tuesday. 

In his 16-minute speech, Tiffany highlighted his childhood on a dairy farm in Elmwood, in the western part of the state as one of eight children.

“Growing up on the farm, we learned to work hard. We learned how to work hard, and we learned to live on a budget, and there are no excuses on the farm, you pick up the shovel, you pick up the pitchfork and you go to work,” Tiffany said. “That’s the way it is. There’s no excuses when those chores start to pile up, and it’s kind of the Wisconsin way.”

The crowd of attendees, some wearing “Make America Great Again” hats, Turning Point USA shirts and even vintage Tiffany for Senate shirts, cheered enthusiastically throughout the speech. 

Linda Michalski, a Wausau resident who retired from working for Marathon County as an  accountant, said she got an invite to Tiffany’s event from the Marathon County Republican Party, of which she is a member. She said she hasn’t researched the other Republican candidates in depth, but that she believes Tiffany’s name recognition will give him an edge.

Michalski said Tiffany’s backstory stuck out to her. 

“Dairy farmers work hard. You can’t just let things slide. You can’t just go on vacation if you’re a dairy farmer, in a dairy farmer family. Things have to get done, and they can’t… If more people had a strong work ethic, they wouldn’t be faced with financial difficulties,” Michalski said. 

Tiffany is hoping to lean on voters like Michaski in the areas of the state where he is most at home, telling reporters after his speech that he needs to “juice up” turnout in northern and western Wisconsin in order to win in 2026. 

“I’m driving all over the state of Wisconsin today, and I was talking to people that were making commitments, and I think you’re going to see more people climb on board here,” Tiffany said. “I got to prove myself to people, the state of Wisconsin.” 

Tiffany, who lives in Minocqua, has represented Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District, a massive area encompassing the northern part of the state, in the House of Representatives since 2020. Before he went to Washington D.C., Tiffany served in the Wisconsin Legislature, first in the Assembly for about three years, followed by nearly eight years in the state Senate, where he was a member of  the powerful, budget-writing Joint Finance Committee. 

Tiffany told reporters that he is expecting that he’ll have to raise $30 or $40 million, and that his campaign is “off to a good start.”

Republicans in the gubernatorial primary are anxiously awaiting a possible endorsement from  President Donald Trump. Tiffany said his last conversation with Trump, which centered mostly on the 7th CD, was in August. 

“We will see how he responds. If he chooses to endorse me, I will certainly welcome that endorsement,” Tiffany said. 

In his speech, Tiffany said he would freeze property taxes and said the annual $325 school revenue limit increase that districts receive due to a partial veto by Evers would be “dead on day one.” 

The annual revenue limit increase gives school districts the option to bring in additional revenue, though without additional state aid, their only option to benefit from the increase is to raise local property taxes. Many school districts throughout the state have been leaning on property taxes to help with costs, since state aid to schools has not kept pace with inflation for almost two decades.

Michalski, a homeowner, said that a freeze in property taxes would be a “welcome relief.” She said her own property taxes have jumped nearly $1,000 recently, a hike that she blames on the Wausau Common Council. 

“Our current government is — it’s awful. It’s just awful, what Gov. Evers is doing. He’s pushing away businesses, he’s adding taxes upon taxes, and… he’s imposing a tax on property owners for 400 years,” Michalski said. 

Tiffany didn’t have additional specifics when it came to exactly how he would freeze property taxes while talking to reporters after his speech. 

“There’s plenty of money in Madison that I think we can help out those local municipalities to do the property tax freeze taxes at the local level. Where are the schools and the local municipalities going to get their money, right? I think the state can help out, especially after the spending blowout with this budget,” Tiffany told reporters after his speech. 

Asked by a reporter if he would seek a suspension of school referendums, Tiffany said he hasn’t “dug that deep into the details” and would “have to study that a little bit.” 

Kevin Lund, a nurse from Kronenwetter, said he appreciates the “Wisconsin First” message that Tiffany delivered. While he identifies as a libertarian, not a Republican, Lund said he has been following Tiffany since he took over from former U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy in 2020. 

“He’s paralleling a lot of the conservative type of sentiments that have been kind of nationwide,” Lund said, adding that he is happy about that. “He’s winning on the 80-20 issues, and as long as he can continue to convey that message throughout the state, I think, he’ll find a lot of success.” 

Those issues, Lund said, include immigration and the economy. 

“When you have money, all of a sudden, everybody’s a little bit happier,” Lund said, adding that young people in particular are dealing with challenges trying to afford a home and are “seeing a stagnation in wage growth.” 

“That’s got to be concerning to the younger generation. I’ve got a daughter that’s young, and… I’m wanting to see young people be able to have the chance to succeed in the state,” Lund said.

Tiffany, speaking about his tenure in Congress, highlighted his visits to the southern border where he said he saw “the damage that was being done to America, where every state had become a border state.” Tiffany, who is a member of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus, has been supportive of Trump’s crackdown on immigration during his second term. 

During his speech, Tiffany repeatedly blamed Democrats for problems in the state and played up cultural issues.

“For too long, Democrats have torn down what has been built up in Wisconsin,” Tiffany said. “If we give them four more years? Buckle up! Buckle up! Because you’ll see illegal aliens having driver’s licenses. You’ll see men playing girls’ sports and cheap foreign labor will replace you.” 

Tiffany also declared that there would be “no sanctuary cities” in Wisconsin under his leadership and called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) “unconstitutional and un-American.” 

“I talk to parents, and they have a simple message in regards to education, they just say, ‘Just educate our kids. Don’t indoctrinate them. Just get them a good education.’” Tiffany said, adding that he would seek to ensure that “dollars for education are going to students, teachers, and communities, not the system.”

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A fierce loyalist of President Donald Trump who represents a broad swath of Wisconsin’s rural north woods in Congress entered the governor’s race in the battleground state on Tuesday, shaking up the Republican primary.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany becomes the front-runner over the two other announced Republican candidates who have less name recognition and support from key conservative donors.

Tiffany announced his bid for governor on “The Dan O’Donnell Show,” describing the decision as a “great challenge but also a great opportunity.”

“I have the experience both in the private sector and the public sector to be able to work from day one,” he said, when asked what differentiates him from the two other Republicans in the race.

“I give us the best chance to win in 2026,” he said.

The governor’s race is open for the first time in 16 years after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers decided against seeking a third term. Numerous Democrats are running, but there is no clear front-runner, and Evers hasn’t endorsed anyone.

Tiffany’s launch did not come with an immediate endorsement from Trump, which will be key in the GOP primary in August 2026.

But Tiffany has the inside track given his longtime support of the president. Another GOP candidate, businessman Bill Berrien, has faced fierce criticism on conservative talk radio after he backed former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley in the 2024 primary and said in August 2020 that he hadn’t decided whether to support Trump.

The third Republican in the race, Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann, has also tried to court Trump voters. He represents a suburban Milwaukee county that Trump won with 67% of the vote in 2024.

Reacting to Tiffany’s announcement, Schoemann said he looked forward to a primary “focused on ideas and winning back the governor’s office.”

Even if he lands a Trump endorsement, Tiffany faces hurdles. In the past 36 years, gubernatorial candidates who were the same party as the president in a midterm election have lost every time, except for Evers in 2022.

Tiffany has cruised to victory in the vast 7th Congressional District — which covers nearly 19,000 square miles encompassing all or part of 20 counties. Tiffany won a special election in 2020 after the resignation of Sean Duffy, who is now Trump’s transportation secretary. Tiffany won that race by 14 points and has won reelection by more than 20 points in each of his three reelections.

But candidates from deep-red rural northern Wisconsin have struggled to win statewide elections, largely because of the huge number of Democratic voters in the state’s two largest cities, Milwaukee and Madison.

Prior to being elected to Congress, Tiffany served just over seven years in the state Legislature. During his tenure, he was a close ally of then-Gov. Scott Walker and voted to pass a law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers.

Tiffany also voted in favor of legalizing concealed carry and angered environmentalists by trying to repeal a state mining moratorium to clear the way for an open-pit mine in northern Wisconsin.

In Congress, Tiffany has upset animal rights activists with his push to take the gray wolf off the endangered species list, which would open the door to wolf hunting seasons.

In 2020, Tiffany voted against accepting the electoral college votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania as part of an effort to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s win. He was one of just 14 Republican House members in 2021 who voted against making Juneteenth a national holiday.

Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Devin Remiker called Tiffany a “bought and paid for stooge,” highlighting his support for Trump’s tariffs, his push to ban abortions around six weeks of pregnancy and his opposition to raising the minimum wage.

“We’re going to show Wisconsinites what a fraud he is and defeat him next November,” Remiker said.

Tiffany, 67, was born on a dairy farm and ran a tourist boat business for 20 years. He has played up his rural Wisconsin roots in past campaigns, which included ads featuring his elderly mother and one in which he slings cow manure to make a point about how he would work with Trump to clean up Washington.

The most prominent Democratic candidates for governor are Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez; Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley; state Sen. Kelda Roys and state Rep. Francesca Hong. Others considering getting in include Attorney General Josh Kaul, former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes and former state economic development director Missy Hughes.

Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit and nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters to get our investigative stories and Friday news roundup. This story is published in partnership with The Associated Press.

Republican US Rep. Tom Tiffany enters Wisconsin governor’s race is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

Rep. Tom Tiffany made his intention to run for governor official Tuesday after teasing his plans for weeks. (Congressional photo)

Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany launched his campaign for governor Tuesday afternoon — becoming the third, and highest profile, candidate in the 2026 Republican primary. 

The 2026 race for governor in Wisconsin will be the first open election in over 15 years as Gov. Tony Evers decided to retire at the end of his second term. Two other Republicans are already in the race: Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann and Whitefish Bay manufacturer Bill Berrien. 

“In 2026, Wisconsin will have a choice between opportunity, security, and freedom or following the path of failure seen in Minnesota and Illinois,” Tiffany said in a statement after officially launching his campaign on a conservative talk radio show hosted by Dan O’Donnell. “I will not allow our state to be dragged down that woke and broke road.”

Tiffany, who lives in Minocqua, had been teasing a run for governor for months and is expected to have an official launch event in Wausau on Wednesday evening.

The 67-year-old said in a statement that he would seek to “freeze property taxes, protect our farmland from Communist China, and fight every day for families, for farmers, and for the hardworking people who make this state great.”

In contrast to the short list of Republicans running so far, the Democratic primary field has become increasingly crowded in recent weeks. Official candidates include Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, state Sen. Kelda Roys, state Rep. Francesca Hong and beer vendor Ryan Strnad. Others considering a run include Attorney General Josh Kaul, former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes and Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation CEO Missy Hughes, who recently announced she would be stepping down from her position in the Evers administration. 

Tiffany was elected to represent Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District, a massive area that encompasses the northern part of the state, in the House of Representatives in a special election in 2020. He took over from current U.S. Transportation Secretary and former Republican Rep. Sean Duffy, who had resigned to care for his family.

Before going to Washington, D.C., Tiffany was in the state Legislature, first in the Wisconsin State Assembly for about three years, followed by nearly eight years in the state Senate. During his tenure, he served on the state’s Joint Finance Committee, which is responsible for writing the state budget. Before that, Tiffany was the Town Supervisor of Little Rice and managed petroleum distribution for Zenker Oil Company.

Tiffany said that he could stay in Congress for much longer if he wanted to, but that he thinks he can do more as governor and is in the race to “uphold conservative principles.”

“It really is time for new leadership and I believe I have the vision to be able to lead the state of Wisconsin and make us one of the great states of America once again,” Tiffany said. 

In Congress, Tiffany is a member of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus and has been a consistent ally to President Donald Trump. Tiffany also supported attempts to overturn former President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 presidential election. So far this year, Tiffany has supported Trump’s tariffs and crack down on immigration, including targeting the H-1B visa program. 

“I support them,” Tiffany said of Trump’s tariffs in his interview with O’Donnell. “At the end of the day if the tariff regime is handled properly, we are going to bring manufacturing back to the United States of America.” 

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Devin Remiker criticized Tiffany in a statement, calling him “Tariff Lover Tom” and saying he “has been jacking up prices on Wisconsin families with his blind support for a trade war that is making everything from beer to beef to school supplies way more expensive — working Wisconsin families can’t afford Tariff Lover Tom being in charge.”

Tiffany said that he would also seek to uphold Wisconsin’s 20-week abortion ban. He has supported federal legislation in the past that would ban abortion at six weeks. 

“I do support that law, and I will uphold it as governor of the state of Wisconsin,” Tiffany said. “I think back to the debate that we had 10 years ago, and you had people on both sides. You had some that were, like, we want unlimited abortions. We had others that said there should be no abortions allowed in the state of Wisconsin, and ultimately, the people of the state said we really want to see something in the middle.”

Tiffany also said he would work to reduce taxes in Wisconsin, including freezing income taxes. He didn’t commit to a flat income tax or eliminating the income tax as some Republicans have proposed.

“I also believe we can reduce income taxes. Can we take it down to zero? I don’t know the answer to that,” Tiffany said.

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Peer-reviewed research found links between marijuana use and psychosis – the loss of contact with reality, experienced as delusions or hallucinations.

The consensus is there is a clear association, but more research is needed to determine if  there is causation.

That’s according to the Journal of Cannabis Research editor, researchers at the Institute of Cannabis Research and a review of 32 studies that reviewed research. 

The institute’s Jeff Smith said most cannabis users don’t develop psychosis.

Research samples:

Lifetime use is associated with increased odds of psychosis, especially among daily or weekly users. 

Psychotic disorders are 11 times more likely among adolescent users than non-users.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who represents most of northern Wisconsin, called for more research on the link to inform legalization policy. 

Marijuana for recreational use is legal in 24 states. In May, Republicans nixed a Wisconsin legalization proposal.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

• National Institute of Mental Health: Understanding Psychosis
• Dr. David Gorelick, University of Maryland psychiatry professor and Journal of Cannabis Research editor-in-chief: Interview
• Institute of Cannabis Research at Colorado State University Pueblo: director and chemistry professor Chad Kinney; and strategic partnership and outreach specialist and biology professor Jeff Smith: Interview
• Psychiatry Research journal: A systematic evidence map of the association between cannabis use and psychosis-related outcomes across the psychosis continuum: An umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses
• Psychological Medicine journal: The impact of schizophrenia genetic load and heavy cannabis use on the risk of psychotic disorder in the EU-GEI case-control and UK Biobank studies
• Psychological Medicine journal: Age-dependent association of cannabis use with risk of psychotic disorder
• Scientific American: The Link between Cannabis and Psychosis in Teens Is Real
• YouTube: Congressman Tom Tiffany Joins DrydenWire Live
• CoverCannabis.com: Marijuana Laws by State for 2025. Where is Marijuana Legal?
• Associated Press: Wisconsin Republicans kill marijuana legalization and tax increases for millionaires

Is there evidence linking marijuana use to psychosis? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.