Bill Berrien is the second Republican to officially launch his campaign for governor and criticized Gov. Tony Evers in his ad for wanting to raise taxes, his actions handling the Trump administration’s deportation efforts, vetoing a bill that would have banned transgender girls from participating on sports teams in an ad posted to YouTube and X. (Screenshot from campaign ad)
Bill Berrien, a Republican businessman and former Navy SEAL, officially launched his campaign for governor Wednesday, comparing himself to President Donald Trump and declaring his support for cutting taxes, deportation efforts and barring transgender girls from locker rooms.
Berrien is the second Republican to officially launch his campaign for governor. He joins Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann who announced in May and has already been on the road pitching himself to fellow Republicans. U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany has also been considering a run for the office.
“Just like President Trump, I’m a political outsider and a businessman. It’s time that we fire the bureaucrats and hire a businessman to fix the problems and take our state back,” Berrien said in a statement. It’s a shift for Berrien, who supported Nikki Haley in the 2024 Republican presidential primary and donated over $30,000 to her campaign — a track record that led to pushback against his candidacy from some Wisconsin conservatives.
In an ad, Berrien spoke over a clip of Trump pumping his fist after last year’s assassination attempt.
“A Navy SEAL is never out of the fight,” Berrien said as the clip played. “We’ve seen that fighting spirit from President Trump. It’s the same fight it takes to run a Wisconsin manufacturing business.”
“I’ll shake up Madison like he’s shaking up D.C.,” Berrien added.
For the last 13 years, Berrien has worked as the owner and chief executive officer of Pindel Global Precision Inc. and Liberty Precision New Berlin contract manufacturers that make machined parts for an array of industries including aerospace, agricultural products, medical and firearms.
A December 2024 report from WUWM details Berrien’s recent role as vice chair of the Wisconsin Defense Industry Council, a collaboration of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce and Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, that seeks to push for more weapons production in Wisconsin. At the time, Berrien said he wanted to figure out how to encourage companies to supply directly to the Department of Defense and also connect businesses with “defense primes” — companies including Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.
Prior to working in the private sector, Berrien served as a Navy SEAL for nine years. He currently lives in Whitefish Bay with his wife and is the father of three.
The Republican hopefuls have bashed incumbent Gov. Tony Evers, who hasn’t decided whether he’ll run for a third term. Evers said he would decide after the state budget process, which was completed last week, and this week said at a visit to Milwaukee to highlight the budget that he expects to announce a decision in a “couple weeks.”
Berrien criticized Evers in his ad for wanting to raise taxes, his actions handling the Trump administration’s deportation efforts, vetoing a bill that would have banned transgender girls from participating on sports teams and locker rooms that align with their gender identity and for using the term “inseminated person” in a section of his budget proposal on artificial insemination.
Berrien also criticized the movement of manufacturing jobs to China by “globalists” and took a swipe at “career politicians.”
“Enough,” Berrien said. “I will cut taxes, increase wages and make Wisconsin the manufacturing powerhouse to the world, again.” He also said he would use law enforcement to keep “criminal illegal” immigrants out of Wisconsin and “keep boys out of our daughters’ sports and locker rooms.”
“President Trump is taking back Washington for the American people,” Berrien said at the end of the ad — naming Trump for the fourth time during the 99 second spot. “Now it’s time to take back our state.”
Berrien launched his “Never Out of The Fight” PAC in April to help “further” conservative causes and push Republican candidates to “get back to winning.” It reported raising $1.2 million in its first three months, according to WisPolitics.
Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Devin Remiker criticized Berrien, saying he was “rich enough to buy himself some attention and clueless enough to think that’s going to work — just like Elon Musk did this past April only to see his political career end.”
The state party is “already building on our playbook that helped take down Brad Schimel, Tim Michels, and Eric Hovde,” Remiker said. “We have no doubt we’ll be in an even stronger position to defeat whoever Trump hand picks to do his bidding in the primary and emerges as the nominee.”
Evers talks to reporters in March 2025. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner. )
Wisconsin Republicans considering running for governor in 2026 are criticizing Gov. Tony Evers for supporting California Gov. Gavin Newsom as he pushes back against President Donald Trump for sending armed troops into the state to respond to protests.
As of Tuesday, President Donald Trump has authorized deployment of 4,000 National Guardsmen and 700 Marines to Los Angeles as protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids continue in the southern California city. This is the first time in six decades that a president has called National Guard troops to respond to civil unrest without a governor’s request for help. The last time, in 1965, President Lyndon Johnson sent troops to Alabama to protect civil rights protesters.
Democratic governors, including Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, asserted their support for California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a joint statement Monday, saying that Trump’s actions were an “alarming abuse of power.”
“Governors are the Commanders in Chief of their National Guard and the federal government activating them in their own borders without consulting or working with a state’s governor is ineffective and dangerous,” the governors said. “Further, threatening to send the U.S. Marines into American neighborhoods undermines the mission of our service members, erodes public trust and shows the Trump administration does not trust local law enforcement. It’s important we respect the executive authority of our country’s governors to manage their National Guards — and we stand with Gov. Newsom who has made it clear that violence is unacceptable and that local authorities should be able to do their jobs without the chaos of this federal interference and intimidation.”
The Los Angeles police have said they could handle the protests, which had been mostly peaceful, though some violence had occurred.
White House border czar Tom Homan has suggested that he would arrest Newsom, but he hadn’t “crossed the line” yet. Trump, asked about the idea of arresting Newsom, said that he would “do it.” After Trump appeared open to the idea, Homan said there is “no intention to arrest the governor right now.”
Wisconsin Republicans are standing behind Trump’s actions in LA and connecting Newsom to Evers’ actions regarding ICE.
In reaction to the governors’ statement, Wisconsin businessman and Navy veteran Bill Berrien, who is considering running for governor in 2026, issued a press release through his Never Out of the Fight PAC saying that Newsom and Evers are enabling the “invasion of illegal immigrants” and “violent protests.” Berrien formed the PAC in April to advance conservative causes and to help Republicans win federal, state and local elections.
“We should be condemning this violence but our governor is once again putting violent criminals above law-abiding citizens,” Berrien said. “I served as a Navy SEAL to protect our country. President Trump is right to step up and end this chaos.”
Josh Schoemann, the first GOP candidate to officially launch a 2026 campaign, responded to a social media post that said the Democratic governors were endorsing “lawlessness and chaos on American streets,” noting a memo on ICE that Evers sent to state employees with guidance on handling ICE, and declaring “Tony’s Gotta Go!!”
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Republicans have been critical of Evers for his handling of increased ICE activity in Wisconsin, including calling for him to be arrested when he stood by guidance that he gave to state employees to call a lawyer if ICE showed up at their office. Those calls came after Homan previously made comments that were interpreted as a threat to arrest Evers.
Evers released a three-minute video following Homan’s vague threat, saying that it represents a “concerning trajectory in this country.”
“We now have a federal government that will threaten or arrest an elected official — or even everyday American citizens — who have broken no laws, committed no crimes, and done nothing wrong,” Evers said in early May. “As disgusted as I am about the continued actions of the Trump Administration, I am not afraid. I have never once been discouraged from doing the right thing, and I will not start today.”
Schoemann spoke at the Dane County Republican’s monthly “Pints and Politics” meeting on Tuesday. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)
Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann stepped up to the front of a room in the back of Kavanaugh’s Esquire Club on the east side of Madison with a grin and quickly started a chant about Gov. Tony Evers.
“Tony’s got to go. Who’s with me?” Schoemann said about the current second-term Democratic governor. He encouraged others in the room to join him. “Tony’s gotta go… Tony’s gotta go. I’d like him to hear it if you don’t mind.”
The crowd of about 30 clapped enthusiastically and slowly started to pick up the chant.
Schoemann, who wore a red UW-Madison quarter zip up, jeans and a camo hat with his campaign logo across the front, was at the restaurant for the Dane County Republican’s monthly “Pints and Politics” meeting. It’s the one of the latest stops for Schoemann, who is the first candidate of either major party to launch his campaign in the 2026 governor’s race.
Evers’ decision on whether he will seek a third term is still up in the air. He recently told WisEye that he is “not spending very much time at all thinking about whether I’m going to run or not.”
Schoemann said that it’s “entirely possible” for Wisconsin to be more competitive for Republicans. He launches his campaign as the Republican Party of Wisconsin is reevaluating how to win after their preferred candidate lost in the state Supreme Court race and as Democrats have won 12 of the last 15 statewide elections.
Schoemann sought to start his “Tony” chant a couple times as he spoke to the group — at one point telling attendees that he is the son of a Lutheran Minister and “can’t handle a congregation unless they join with me.” The crowd joined the chant more quickly this time, but Schoemann cut it off quickly as he pulled his camo hat off and placed it over his heart and encouraged attendees to stand up to sing “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” with him.
Schoemann has worked in Washington County as the elected county executive for the last five years and as the county administrator for six years prior. He owns a farm in the town of Trenton, located between West Bend and Grafton, with his wife and is the father of two.
Schoemann told attendees that he joined the Army National Guard, attended UW-Whitewater and then served in Iraq in 2003. Throughout the event, Schoemann returned to his faith and military service, telling the crowd that “love your neighbor” has been central to his work and will be central to his campaign.
“It’s changed the trajectory of my life permanently,” Schoemann said, describing a memory of his time in Iraq when he gave bottles of water to a child who was drinking from a puddle.
“As he approaches the puddle, I’m thinking, ‘Oh, he’s just going to jump around in the puddle and play.’ He kneels down, and starts cupping his hands and starts drinking out of that puddle,” Schoemann said.
“When I came back home, that moment kept coming back to me over and over and over, and I dedicated the rest of my life to the service and sacrifice of the guys and gals who didn’t come home, either in whole or in part, and of my Lord, Jesus, by loving my neighbor,” he continued, “ and that, ladies and gentlemen, is how we are going to win this election. We are going to turn Wisconsin red by loving our neighborhood.”
Rush Limbaugh and Ronald Reagan
Schoemann said he grew up a “Rush Limbaugh” and “Ronald Reagan baby” — with beliefs in smaller government, lower taxes and strong defense — and that those ideas have shaped his service in local government.
Schoemann repeatedly criticized Evers and spoke about his record.
“Under the education governor, are your schools better than they were six years ago?” Schoemann asked, with answers of ‘no’ coming from some in the room. “He’s filling potholes right now — getting his picture taken in every community can get to… Are your roads really all that much better than they were six years ago? No, no. They’re not, and if you look across the state of Wisconsin on every issue issue after issue, things aren’t better.”
Evers has been traveling across the state last week helping fill potholes as a part of an annual effort to call attention to the issue of improving the roads and his recent budget proposal of to dedicate funds for that purpose — though Republicans have removed that from the budget. At one stop on his trip, Evers told reporters that he didn’t know much about Schoemann but thinks he’s “gonna have to be another Donald Trump.”
“That’s the only way Republicans can kind of move forward in this day and age,” Evers said, according to WSAW-TV 7.
Schoemann said that he decided to run because he is “sick and tired of our kids, leaving the state for other opportunities in different states and not coming back” and “sick and tired of our retirees leaving this state that has become a complete tax hell.”
Schoemann also compared himself to former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson.
“Back when I was a kid in 1986, Tommy Thompson took out another Tony — [former Gov.] Tony Earl. A young, energetic Republican did very, very well in Dane County, and eventually by 1994, I believe he won Dane County,” said Schoemann, who is 43.
Goal: Lose by less in Dane County
Thompson is the last Wisconsin governor to win a third term in office, and Schoemann wants to ensure that stays true by taking a page out of Thompson’s playbook. Schoemann said he would have three rules for his campaign: go to the Northwoods, go to Milwaukee and go to Dane County. He said that since his campaign launched he had visited Florence County to talk with a group of people, who, he said, likely “hadn’t seen a statewide elected official in decades,” had been on the radio in Milwaukee and his Tuesday evening stop in Madison was his second already.
Schoemann said Republicans need to lose by less in Dane County, pointing out that President Donald Trump won the state of Wisconsin with nearly 23% of the vote in the deep blue county.
“We’ve got to be pushing back towards 26, 27, 28[%], and we’re only going to do it by having conversations with our neighbors and physically being present,” Schoemann said. “I can tell you you’re going to get sick of seeing me because I will be back again and again and again. I want to hear from you what this state needs to be. I want to hear from you what direction the state needs to go.”
Schoemann then took questions from the audience.
One attendee asked about what he would do about property taxes. Local communities across the state have been strapped for funds in recent years due to restrictions in the ways that they can raise revenue with many turning to raising property taxes through referendums to help afford services.
“How many of you live in the city of Madison? How are you liking that new referendum for the school district and the city — one-two punch?” Schoemann replied. He added that property tax rates in Washington Co. are low because of decisions he’s made. He said that at times when they have “considered alternatives where we needed additional resources, we go to the people and ask.”
The county went to referendum in 2024 to help prevent cuts to its public safety services. While the referendum failed, a deal on shared revenue and a local sales tax for Milwaukee that lawmakers and Gov. Tony Evers made helped the county avoid the cuts.
Banning ‘Democracy in the Park,’ encouraging early voting
In response to a question about elections, Schoemann said that he believes in purging voter rolls, banning voting events including ‘Democracy in the Park” — a COVID-era effort held by the city of Madison where poll workers picked up absentee ballots from voters who dropped them off — and having “significant election integrity” measures. He also talked about promoting early voting in more rural areas.
“The clerks are part time, most of them work out of their houses. They don’t have an office at the town hall… In those places. If you want to have in-person absentee voting, you have to schedule an appointment at the home of the clerk. In Madison and in Milwaukee… the convenience level is through the roof right now,” Schoemann said. “It’s not quite seven days a week, 24 hours a day for those 13 days, but it isn’t far either, especially as compared to those towns.”
Schoemann said his county sought to incentivize local municipal workers to add in-person absentee voting days and times by paying them 150% of the cost. He said the state needs to “completely transform how we think about elections in Wisconsin.”
Schoemann segued to criticizing Evers for his relationship with lawmakers and the number of bills he has vetoed, saying changes in law need to come as the result of the governor working as a “coequal” branch with the Legislature. He said that the governor should work with bills before outright vetoing them.
“The fact that this governor doesn’t have the leadership capability to walk down the hallway and talk to legislative leaders is an embarrassment to our state,” Schoemann said, referring to communication difficulties between lawmakers and Evers, who are currently negotiating the next state budget.
Schoemann said that he wouldn’t want to “throw money” to help address education problems, though he thinks the system currently in place is outdated. He also said that he would seek to help change the veto power that governors have.
This will be the first time Schoemann runs in a statewide election. He promised the room that no one would “outwork” him.
“There might be more money. There might be worse press, there might be all kinds of things, but no one will outwork me,” Schoemann said.
In the weeks before deciding to run, Schoemann told the room that he asked his wife if she was sure she wanted him to run.
“You know what she said to me?” Schoemann asked. “‘Well, can’t be worse than Iraq.’”
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Tony’s Gotta Go!!! 
