Wisconsin Republican Senate candidate Hovde promises to donate salary to charity

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republican U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde pledged in a new campaign ad Friday to donate his salary to charity if elected, a move that comes as Democrats try to paint the California bank owner and real estate mogul as an out-of-touch multimillionaire.

Hovde has suggested he will spend as much as $20 million of his own money in the race to defeat Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin. The race is one of a few that could determine if Democrats maintain majority control of the Senate.

“I’ve worked hard, been fortunate,” Hovde says in the ad. “I don’t need their special interest money, and I won’t take it.”

Hovde promises to give his entire $174,000 taxpayer-funded salary to a Wisconsin charity every year. His spokesperson, Ben Voelkel, said the exact charities are yet to be determined, but they would not include the Hovde Foundation, a charity run by Hovde’s family.

“I can’t be bought,” Hovde says in the spot, where he promises not to be subject to special interests. Hovde has already said he won’t accept donations from corporate special interests, but he also can’t control how they spend their money in a campaign.

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