CNN: Wisconsin Gov Candidate Francesca Hong Called to Abolish Police — And Still Won’t Disavow It
A CNN KFile investigation published Friday is threatening to reshape the Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor, revealing that state Rep. Francesca Hong repeatedly called for abolishing police departments in posts she has neither deleted nor renounced — and that when given a direct opportunity to walk them back, she declined.
Hong, a 37-year-old democratic socialist and state representative from Madison, wrote on X in 2020 that she supported “defunding the police as a first step towards abolishing the police.” The following year she wrote: “Police exist to uphold white supremacy. Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option.” In a separate June 2020 tweet directed at the City of Madison, Hong listed her top five budget priorities — all five were “Defund police.” Twitchy
When CNN asked her directly whether she still supports abolishing police, Hong did not say no. Instead she issued a statement saying: “While I envision a world where public safety is not synonymous with law enforcement, I recognize that this paradigm shift is a very long term vision and my focus is building systems of care.” She called the posts part of a “wider conversation around police abolition” rooted in her belief that “the current system is not working.” RedState
When pressed on the defund question during an April campaign interview — before the CNN story broke — Hong was similarly evasive: “I think we have to make investments in what would help prevent crime — investments in communities, our public schools, community centers, public libraries. When there are limited resources, we have to look at where we can make cuts as well as where we can make investments.” She did not directly reject defunding. Twitchy
The revelations carry particular weight given Wisconsin’s political landscape. A Marquette Law School poll from March shows Hong leading the Democratic primary field at 14 percent, with former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes at 11 percent and a massive 65 percent of Democratic primary voters still undecided. Barnes himself was burned by similar police-funding comments during his 2022 Senate race — a race he lost to Republican Ron Johnson in part because of the issue. Yahoo!
The story also surfaced additional posts from Hong’s social media history. Her Twitter bio previously listed her location as “Occupied Ho-Chunk Land” rather than Madison or Wisconsin. A since-deleted tweet from 2020 included profanity directed at fast food executives invited to the White House. A repost she later deleted commented on “peak white male privilege.” Hong stood by or explained each item when asked by CNN. Just The News
The primary is August 11. Hong is running against Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Barnes, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, and state Sen. Kelda Roys. Whoever emerges will face Republican Tom Tiffany — or potentially a different GOP candidate — in what both parties expect to be one of the most competitive governor’s races in the country this fall.
Swansenreport 
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