Rodriguez suspends campaign for governor (MADISON)
Another candidate is out of the Democratic primary for Wisconsin Governor. Lieutenant Governor Sarah Rodriguez says financial miscounts by a former campaign manager would have overshadowed the rest of her campaign. Inaccurate campaign finance filings showed the Democrat had hundreds of thousands more in donations than the campaign had on hand. Rodriguez fired her campaign manager, but the damage was already done.
Today I’m suspending my campaign. Thank you to everyone who believed and showed up for this campaign. Let’s keep fighting – together – to protect the Wisconsin we love. pic.twitter.com/177LrrLD56
— Sara Rodriguez (@saraforwi) July 17, 2026
Former Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, Representative Francesca Hong, Senator Kelda Roys and former Department of Administration Secretary Joel Brennan remain in the race just 3 weeks away from the primary elections. Congressman Tom Tiffany is endorsed by President Donald Trump and is the presumed Republican nominee.
Billionaire donors drive Tiffany fundraising lead (UNDATED)
The presumed Republican nominee for Wisconsin governor has outraised all Democrats combined. But analysis of the most recent campaign finance reports shows just three conservative billionaire donors account for the bulk of the $8.7 million 7th District Congressman Tom Tiffany raised from January 1 through June 30. The Republican Party of Wisconsin received $4 million from Uline shipping supply company owners Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein and $2.5 million from ABC Supply CEO Diane Hendricks which went to Tiffany. Among Democrats, former Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes reported raising $841,358 during the period, followed closely by Madison state Representative Francesca Hong’s $708,883, former head of the state Department of Administration Joel Brennan raising $665,627 and Madison state Senator Kelda Roys raising $527,431.
Milwaukee area strip club loses licenses amid human trafficking investigation (FRANKLIN)
A notorious Milwaukee area strip club is losing all of its licenses. The Franklin city council voted 3 to 2 Thursday night to revoke the liquor, cigarette and entertainment licenses for On The Border strip club. The move comes after multiple people, including the owner of the business, were swept up in a human trafficking investigation. Police say 24 victims who worked at O T B were forced to perform sex acts in Wisconsin and other states.
Former UW-Madison researcher bound over for trial on attempted poisoning (MADISON)
A former UW Madison researcher accused of trying to poison a co worker has been bound over for trial. 42-year-old Makoto Kuroda is accused of putting lab chemicals into the water bottle and shoes of a colleague this spring. The colleague took a drink from the bottle, noticed it had a bad taste and then spit it out. During a preliminary hearing Thursday, a police officer testified that Kuroda admitted he put chemicals in the water. He was apparently upset that his colleague who had been a friend got a promotion. Kuroda was initially placed on leave from his job at the university’s Influenza Research Institute on Madison’s West Side. He later resigned.
Former restaurant manager gets prison for sexually assaulting teen employee (STEVENS POINT)
A former manager at the Plover Pizza Hut will serve prison time for sexually assaulting a young employee. Thirty-year-old Kyle Elkins will serve seven years in prison and five years on extended supervision after pleading no contest to a pair of felony counts. He forced himself onto the victim early 2025, in one case pulling a gun and threatening to fire the 17-year-old if she didn’t engage. His sentence, handed down in Portage County Court on Thursday, includes treatment and a stay on the state’s sex offender registry.