# Brad Pfaff **Wisconsin State Senator** (32nd District) and 2022 Democratic nominee for [[WI-03-2026]] — lost to [[Derrick Van Orden]] that cycle. **Not running federally in 2026**; remains in the Wisconsin Senate and has endorsed [[Rebecca Cooke]], the 2026 Democratic front-runner for WI-03. ## Status in 2026 cycle - **Not a federal candidate** - Continuing service in Wisconsin State Senate (32nd) - **Endorsed Rebecca Cooke** for WI-03 — the party's consolidation around Cooke's 3rd run traces back through Pfaff's (and Cooke's own prior) field-clearing ## Background - Western Wisconsin / Driftless region - Pre-political career in federal agriculture administration; USDA Farm Service Agency (exact title and dates NEEDS VERIFICATION) - Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection **Secretary-designate** — appointment NOT confirmed by Wisconsin Senate, making his non-confirmation one of the high-profile episodes of the Evers first term - Ran for the 32nd Senate district, won; re-elected - 2022 WI-03 nominee: lost to Derrick Van Orden ## Ideological positioning - Mainstream Wisconsin Democrat; rural / agriculture-policy lane - The "non-confirmed cabinet designee turned state senator" arc is a specific Wisconsin political biography — connecting rural policy expertise to elected office via a Republican-legislature rejection that may have elevated rather than buried him ## Related - [[WI-03-2026]] — current-cycle race file - [[Rebecca Cooke]] — 2026 D nominee Pfaff endorsed - [[Derrick Van Orden]] — 2022 opponent, current WI-03 incumbent ## Sources - [Ballotpedia — Brad Pfaff](https://ballotpedia.org/Brad_Pfaff) - [Wikipedia — Brad Pfaff](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brad_Pfaff)