News: House Majority PAC, the top House Democratic super PAC, is up on the airwaves in Wisconsin’s 3rd District going after Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) on abortion rights.
The ad follows a familiar playbook for Democratic messaging in recent cycles. A local doctor — in this case, a family physician from Tomah, Wis. — slams Van Orden for comparing abortion to genocide and describing himself as “100% pro-life.”
Since 2022’s Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Van Orden has changed his tune. In 2023, he expressed support for a 15-week abortion ban with exceptions for rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother.
Van Orden is a top target for Democrats in the western Wisconsin seat, which former Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.) held for more than two decades. When Kind retired last cycle, Van Orden won the open seat by four points over Democrat Brad Pfaff.
This time around, Democrat Rebecca Cooke is challenging Van Orden. Cooke raised an eye-popping $2.75 million in Q3.
The outside investment from HMP is a sign this seat will be competitive — and expensive — come November.
Plus: The political arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is launching a $200,000 ad buy targeting former Rep. Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) in her campaign against Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.).
The ad, which is running in both English and Spanish, accuses Herrell of allowing “our public lands to be sold off to the highest bidder.”
“Nothing is sacred to Yvette Herrell,” the ad’s narrator says. “Not our land, not our health.”
The BOLD PAC ads are the latest development in the high-stakes rematch between Vasquez and Herrell. Vasquez’s messaging has tied Herrell to the far right of the GOP, while Republican ads have slammed Vasquez on the border and his past comments on law enforcement. The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter rates the 2nd District seat as a toss-up.
We also have fundraising news for you from this race: Vasquez raised more than $2.1 million in the third quarter for his reelection campaign.
