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Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026

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2024
Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District
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General election
Election details
Filing deadline: June 1, 2026
Primary: August 11, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Wisconsin

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District
1st2nd3rd4th5th6th7th8th
Wisconsin elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

All U.S. House districts, including the 2nd Congressional District of Wisconsin, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. To learn more about other elections on the ballot, click here.

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan and Erik Olsen are running in the general election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on November 3, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan (D)
Image of Erik Olsen
Erik Olsen (R)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here. You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

Voting information

See also: Voting in Wisconsin

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Mark Pocan Democratic Party $466,194 $413,302 $1,055,109 As of September 30, 2025
Erik Olsen Republican Party $2,840 $3,415 $0 As of September 12, 2025

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
12/16/202512/9/202512/2/202511/25/2025
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid Democratic
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe DemocraticSafe DemocraticSafe DemocraticSafe Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

This section will contain information on ballot access related to this state's elections when it is available.

District history

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.

General election

General election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) defeated Erik Olsen (R) in the general election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan (D)
 
70.1
 
320,317
Image of Erik Olsen
Erik Olsen (R)
 
29.8
 
136,357
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1%
 
583

Total votes: 457,257
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 13, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan
 
99.8
 
149,581
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2%
 
316

Total votes: 149,897
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Erik Olsen (R) defeated Charity Barry (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 13, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Erik Olsen
Erik Olsen
 
56.1
 
23,035
Image of Charity Barry
Charity Barry
 
43.6
 
17,897
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3%
 
110

Total votes: 41,042
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) defeated Erik Olsen (R) and Douglas Alexander (Independent) in the general election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan (D)
 
71.0
 
268,740
Image of Erik Olsen
Erik Olsen (R)
 
26.9
 
101,890
Image of Douglas Alexander
Douglas Alexander (Independent)  Candidate Connection
 
2.0
 
7,689
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1%
 
218

Total votes: 378,537
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 9, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan
 
99.8
 
106,595
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2%
 
198

Total votes: 106,793
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Erik Olsen (R) defeated Charity Barry (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 9, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Erik Olsen
Erik Olsen
 
49.8
 
21,774
Image of Charity Barry
Charity Barry  Candidate Connection
 
49.7
 
21,711
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.5%
 
225

Total votes: 43,710
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) defeated Peter Theron (R) in the general election for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan (D)
 
69.7
 
318,523
Image of Peter Theron
Peter Theron (R)
 
30.3
 
138,306
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1%
 
376

Total votes: 457,205
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Incumbent Mark Pocan (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 11, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mark Pocan
Mark Pocan
 
99.6
 
120,353
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4%
 
488

Total votes: 120,841
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2

Peter Theron (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Wisconsin District 2 on August 11, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Peter Theron
Peter Theron
 
99.7
 
18,812
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3%
 
50

Total votes: 18,862
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_wi_congressional_district_02.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026
Information about competitiveness will be added here as it becomes available.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is D+21. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 21 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Wisconsin's 2nd the 55th most Democratic district nationally.[5]

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District
Kamala Harris Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Party
69.0% 29.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Wisconsin, 2024

Wisconsin presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 15 Democratic wins
  • 16 Republican wins
  • 1 other win
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R D R R P[6] R D D D R D R R R D R R D R R D D D D D D D R D R
See also: Party control of Wisconsin state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Wisconsin's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Wisconsin
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 1 2 3
Republican 1 6 7
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 8 10

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Wisconsin's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Wisconsin, October 2025
Office Officeholder
Governor Democratic Party Tony Evers
Lieutenant Governor Democratic Party Sara Rodriguez
Secretary of State Democratic Party Sarah Godlewski
Attorney General Democratic Party Josh Kaul

State legislature

Wisconsin State Senate

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 15
     Republican Party 18
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 33

Wisconsin State Assembly

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 45
     Republican Party 54
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 99

Trifecta control

Wisconsin Party Control: 1992-2025
Two years of Democratic trifectas  •  Ten years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D
Senate D R R R D D R D D D D R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

See also

Wisconsin 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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Wisconsin congressional delegation
Voting in Wisconsin
Wisconsin elections:
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Democratic primary battlegrounds
Republican primary battlegrounds
U.S. Senate Democratic primaries
U.S. Senate Republican primaries
U.S. House Democratic primaries
U.S. House Republican primaries
U.S. Congress elections
U.S. Senate elections
U.S. House elections
Special elections
Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  5. Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
  6. Progressive Party


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
Tony Wied (R)
Republican Party (7)
Democratic Party (3)