Two GOP congressional candidates are trying to do what no other Republican has done since Democratic U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore took office in 2005 — beat her in an election.
Purnima Nath and Tim Rogers are facing off in the Aug. 13 primary election for Wisconsin’s 4th Congressional District to attempt to unseat Moore this fall.
Whoever wins the primary will have a steep hill to climb in the general election. Moore has won all of her re-election bids in landslide victories.
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Nath and Rogers are attempting to win over voters in the heavily Democratic 4th Congressional District, which includes the city of Milwaukee and parts of Milwaukee County. Moore, a Milwaukee native, is running for her 11th term in office.
Both Republicans said broader national issues like securing the U.S. southern border and improving the economy were important to them, but they also discussed the need to reform Milwaukee Public Schools. The city’s public school system has had a tumultuous couple of months after it was revealed the district could lose out on millions of dollars for failing to submit financial data to the state.
Tim Rogers
Rogers, a Milwaukee native, said he graduated from North Division High School and attended Milwaukee Area Technical College. Every two years since 2018, he’s been attempting to unseat Moore.
Rogers said he’s running as a Republican to “do what’s best for the people.”
“I made a commitment in 2018 that I will continue running until we get it right,” Rogers said. “And this is my … fourth primary.”
Rogers has faced off against Moore in 2018, 2020 and 2022 but hasn’t received more than 23 percent of the vote yet.
His campaign website lists four main issues: universal school choice, criminal justice reform, clean water and lowering taxes. But in an interview with WPR Tuesday, Rogers focused his comments on the economy and the border.
“Well, we do need control on the border and what’s going on,” Rogers said. “The economy has to be changed.”
Rogers’ website said he believes “urban schools,” including MPS, have “failed our students for decades.” Rogers said he supports “School Choice and School Voucher programs,” a stance common among conservative candidates.
“We must not let school districts spend excessive amounts of money on educational methods that have been proven to fail urban communities,” his website said.
Rogers also said “energy independence” is important to him, which he said will help lower the cost of gasoline.
“I got to keep running, it’s in my heart, in my soul,” Rogers said. “I love the people of this state, the country.”
Purnima Nath
Nath said she’s an engineer from India, but she came to America “legally.” She said she’s worked in management consulting and got interested in politics around the time when former President Donald Trump was elected.
“And I have seen massive amount of attacks against (Trump),” Nath said. “I had to look into the situation, what was happening, and that’s when I moved into politics.”
Nath ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly, losing to State. Rep. Deb Andraca, D-Whitefish Bay, in 2022. She also ran for Milwaukee County Executive but ultimately lost that bid.
In an interview with WPR, she said she’s interested in the economy and education, issues she says have taken a back seat in the country. She says her main issues include “national security, border security and legal immigration.”
“I am a immigrant myself, so I’m very open to immigration,” Nath said. “However, I do not see any benefit in terms of the open border policies, where anybody can come in, or anybody can be settled wherever.”
While migrants showed up at the U.S. southern border in record numbers in 2023, a variety of protections in place keep the borders from being “open.”
Nath’s campaign website also said she’s focused on “law and order.”
“I see a massive amount of riots and crimes increasing on our streets and defunding the police,” Nath said in an interview. “The entire agenda that leftists pushed about couple of years ago, failed and fallen … flat on their face, unfortunately.”
Nath also said she wants reform at Milwaukee Public Schools and said money the district is getting should be spent more wisely.
Editor’s note: The story was updated to accurately reflect Purnima Nath’s priorities as a candidate.
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