Republican Wisconsin Senate candidate Hovde launches first campaign ad

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde is launching his first television ad of the race, part of a seven-figure statewide buy his campaign said Monday will include multiple spots over the next month.

Hovde, a multimillionaire businessman, is running to take on Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin. She has yet to run an ad in the race, despite officially announcing her reelection bid for a third term nearly a year ago in April 2023. Hovde’s first spot, which will air Tuesday, is the same one he made public on his website when he launched his campaign last week.

In the ad, Hovde cites the economy, crime, health care and “open borders” as problems facing the country. He does not mention Baldwin or Wisconsin in the spot.

“Everything is going in the wrong direction,” Hovde says in the ad. “All Washington does is divide us and talk about who’s to blame and nothing gets done.”

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Baldwin’s campaign spokesperson,