


Democratic candidate for Governor in Wisconsin
General Election
Voters choose the office holder.
Current prediction-market probability for the candidate, updated as market prices change.
David Crowley is trading at 75% to win the Wisconsin Governor winner? on prediction markets.
Key details about the candidate’s background, party, office sought and current campaign.
Current roleFormer State Representative
PartyDemocratic
Political ideologyProgressive Democrat
Age40 years old (May 14, 1986)
GenderMale
LocationWisconsin
BackgroundPolitician
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin–Milwaukee — B.S., Community Engagement and Education (2024)
Notable personal detailsDavid C. Crowley is a Democratic politician serving as Milwaukee County Executive since May 4, 2020, and previously represented Wisconsin’s 17th Assembly District from 2017 to 2020. He is a lifelong Milwaukee resident and has worked as a community organizer and legislative aide before holding elected office. He earned a B.S. in Community Engagement and Education from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in 2024. He has also been a candidate in the Democratic primary for governor of Wisconsin in the 2026 election cycle.
Supports reducing reliance on property taxes by diversifying local revenue (including a sales tax increase), favors tax relief for working families, and backs state budget investments in services while seeking commissions or reforms to the tax code rather than blanket tax cuts. Emphasizes using new revenue streams to fund public services and pension obligations and to invest in housing, transit, and public safety.
Supports expanding access to affordable healthcare, protecting Medicaid and Medicare funding, and advancing public health and health equity initiatives at the county level. Prioritized investments in mental health crisis care and appointed a chief health policy advisor to guide public-health and equity-focused policies. Has acted to maintain county employee healthcare coverage and opposed federal funding cuts that would reduce critical health services.
David Crowley opposes local law-enforcement partnerships with ICE and supports existing Milwaukee County policies that do not honor ICE detainers or assist federal immigration arrests. He has called for local law enforcement to focus on community protection rather than serving as federal immigration agents and criticized ICE arrests at the county courthouse.
The candidate supports protecting and restoring abortion access and describes abortion as essential healthcare; he has said he will defend a person’s right to make reproductive health decisions and opposes laws that restrict abortion. He co-sponsored a 2017 legislative resolution declaring abortion is health care and has issued statements criticizing decisions that limit abortion access.
David Crowley has advanced a county-level climate strategy aiming for net‑zero carbon emissions in Milwaukee County operations by 2050 and has supported clean energy installations and energy-efficiency programs. His administration enacted the Milwaukee County Climate Action 2050 plan and pursued measures such as on-site solar and workforce programs tied to energy efficiency. These actions emphasize emissions reductions, clean energy investment, and equity-focused climate resilience at the county level.
The candidate emphasizes preventing and reducing gun violence through community-based violence-prevention programs, investments in public safety infrastructure, and removing illegal guns from streets while collaborating with state and local partners. Policy statements focus on funding prevention (e.g., Advance Peace), improving public-safety facilities, and coordinating with the governor’s office on violence-prevention efforts.
David Crowley won the Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial primary and is now the nominee to face Republican Tom Tiffany in the general election. The win came after he briefly left the race and then re-entered, and he narrowly beat Francesca Hong in a contest that had been closely watched. Since winning, Crowley has been trying to unify Democrats and cast the race as a fight against "MAGA extremism." He has also been attacking Tiffany on taxes, spending, and cost-of-living issues while defending his own record on homelessness and overdose deaths.
Recent polling results and the candidate's current average in the race.
David Crowley currently averages 44.4%, ranking first in this race, 2.4 points ahead of the nearest opponent.
Average recalculated from polls through Aug 12 - 13.


Aggregation source: FiftyPlusOne
New updates coming soon
We're monitoring and will update when new data impacts the race.