On Monday, Wisconsin-based Michels Corporation construction executive Tim Michels formally announced he is running in the GOP primary for governor. In his announcement, Michels said that he will use his private-sector experience to bring people together. Other issues he highlighted included education, in which he accused incumbent Democratic Gov. Tony Evers of ruining the Wisconsin education system. Additionally, he called upon GOP legislators to reintroduce the parental bill of rights and a bill which would break up the Milwaukee Public Schools. In the early days of his campaign, Michels is already seeking to position himself as an outsider in the GOP primary for Governor. However, Michels is not new to the political space. In 2004, he ran against Democratic U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold. Recently, he served on the board of the Rebecca Kleefisch’s 1848 Project, a policy group which she formed as she considered her run for governor in 2022.

During his announcement speech at the Michels Corporation building in Brownsville, Michels spoke of going to work for his family’s business at age nine and recounted his 12 years of military service in the Army in which he rose to the rank of major. Michels also spoke of his late father, calling him an entrepreneur and a risk taker who wasn’t afraid to roll up his sleeves. “That’s how he trained my brothers and me to operate, and that’s how I’m going to operate as governor,” Michels said.

Michels additionally gave an interview with conservative radio host Jay Weber while launching his campaign. In the interview, Michels announced that he will largely fund the campaign himself, stating that he will not accept donations from political action committees or lobbyists. He also declared that he would accept no more than $500 from individuals, despite state law allowing donations of up to $20,000. “I will never ask anyone for a donation. And I am going to limit the amount of money that someone can give me to $500. Why is that? I’m not going to owe anyone anything,” he said.

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