MADISON, Wis. (AP) 鈥� Retired announced Thursday that he won't run for Wisconsin governor this year, ignoring pleas to do so by former President Donald Trump.
Duffy also ruled out a run for U.S. Senate, another sign that Republican incumbent plans on seeking a third term this year. Johnson has not said yet whether he will run again.
Duffy announced his intention not to run on Jay Weber's conservative talk radio show. He had not taken any public steps toward mounting a run, but until this week the vocal Trump supporter had not ruled it out either. Duffy doesn鈥檛 live in Wisconsin, had not been raising money for a campaign, had not assembled a team and had been silent on Trump鈥檚 call for him to enter the race.
鈥淗opefully I鈥檓 not riding off into the sunset,鈥� the 50-year-old Duffy told Weber. 鈥淚鈥檓 just running into the sunset right now. ... If an opportunity presents itself, I鈥檇 like to come back and partake in Wisconsin politics.鈥�
Duffy, the father of nine children, said the time he needs to care for his family did not mesh with the demands of running for a statewide office.
Duffy's decision not to run leaves former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch as the in the race against .
The only inkling that a Duffy run for governor might be possible came in October when Trump issued a statement saying he was 鈥渨orking hard to get very popular and capable Former Congressman Sean Duffy of Wisconsin to run.鈥�
鈥淗e would be fantastic!鈥� Trump said then. 鈥淎 champion athlete, Sean loves the people of Wisconsin, and would be virtually unbeatable. His wife, Rachel, is likewise an incredible person. ... Run Sean, Run!鈥�
Duffy, a former lumberjack athlete and frequent contributor to Fox News, was featured on MTV鈥檚 鈥淭he Real World: Boston鈥� in 1997. He met his future wife, Rachel Campos-Duffy, on the set of MTV鈥檚 鈥淩oad Rules: All Stars鈥� in 1998.
Duffy served as a special prosecutor and Ashland County district attorney. He was elected to Congress as part of the tea party wave in 2010 and served until his resignation in 2019 after learning that his ninth child had a heart condition. He sold his home in Wisconsin in September and is living in New Jersey.
Kleefisch, who served as former GOP Gov. Scott Walker鈥檚 lieutenant governor for eight years, has also praised Trump and tried to appeal to conservative Republicans in an attempt to fend off a serious challenge in the Aug. 9 primary. Several lesser-known Republicans are also running. And former U.S. Senate candidate Kevin Nicholson, a retired Marine, has said he would run for either governor or Senate, depending on whether Johnson seeks a third term.
Johnson did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
Evers narrowly defeated Walker in 2018, two years after Trump won the state. by fewer than 21,000 votes in 2020 and Republicans have made defeating Evers a top priority. Republicans control the Legislature but Evers has blocked their agenda by vetoing a host of bills that would make it more difficult to vote, curb abortion rights and enact Republican-drawn maps following redistricting.
Scott Bauer, The Associated Press
