MADISON, Wis. – The Republican nominee for governor, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, doubled down on his efforts to challenge the 2020 presidential election results during a heated debate Wednesday, citing concerns over private election funding as the primary justification for his past opposition to certifying Joe Biden’s victory in Wisconsin.
Tiffany, who is endorsed by Donald Trump, defended his decision to support the former president’s efforts to overturn the state’s 2020 election results, framing his dissent around the influx of “Zuckerbucks”—a term used by critics to describe the $10 million in grants provided to Wisconsin municipalities by the Mark Zuckerberg-funded Center for Tech and Civic Life.
“One of the reasons that I did that is ‘Zuckerbucks,’” Tiffany stated during the debate. He further pointed to the actions of election clerks in Milwaukee and Dane counties, who advised voters during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic that they could claim “indefinitely confined” status to bypass photo ID requirements for absentee ballots. “That’s why I objected, because the people of the state of Wisconsin, they did not want that,” Tiffany added.
The exchange highlights how the lingering narrative of the 2020 election continues to shape the current gubernatorial race in this key battleground state. Trump’s unsuccessful 2020 legal effort in Wisconsin sought to disqualify 220,000 ballots from the state’s two most populous counties, a move Tiffany—who also voted against certifying electoral votes from Pennsylvania and Arizona—supported.
Tiffany’s Democratic opponent, David Crowley, immediately seized on the remarks, arguing that the congressman’s rationale was insufficient and raised serious concerns about his commitment to democratic processes.
“He didn’t say anything nefarious was going on with our elections,” Crowley noted, questioning Tiffany’s judgment. “He didn’t say anything happened throughout the process. He just didn’t like the fact of how money was being spent.”
Crowley went further, suggesting that Tiffany’s history of opposing certification makes him untrustworthy to oversee the results of the 2028 presidential election should he become governor. When pressed on whether he would commit to certifying future contests, Tiffany responded, “I will certify the election in 2028 regardless of who the winner is.”
The issue of private election funding has since become settled law in the state. In 2024, Wisconsin voters passed a Republican-backed constitutional amendment that officially prohibits the use of private grants to administer elections.
As the race moves into its final stretch, the debate underscores the deep political divide in Wisconsin, where five of the last seven presidential elections have been decided by margins of less than one percentage point. With Trump winning the state in 2016 and 2024, but losing in 2020, the integrity of the electoral process remains a flashpoint for voters on both sides of the aisle.
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