Van Orden’s firebrand style under spotlight in 3rd District race against Cooke

When U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden won the 3rd Congressional District in 2022, the Republican from Prairie du Chien billed himself as a political outsider who could represent average Wisconsinites in a federal government that has forgotten them.

It’s largely the same message he’s using in the 2024 election. In a campaign ad featuring an unruly herd of goats, Van Orden compares his colleagues in Washington to the farm animals, calling them “loud-mouth, preening politicians.”

But Van Orden is no longer a political newcomer. He’s an incumbent member of Congress, running in arguably the most competitive congressional district in the state. The retired Navy SEAL’s outspoken nature has attracted national attention a few times in the last two years.

Van Orden has continued to fight to hold on to his outsider brand and his seat in what’s likely to be a competitive race in western Wisconsin. He declined WPR’s request to be interviewed for this story, but has said he is running to lower consumer prices and improve public safety and border security. 

“This election is about three things: it’s gas, groceries and grandkids,” Van Orden told supporters at a rally with vice presidential candidate JD Vance in Eau Claire. 

His opponent, Eau Claire Democrat Rebecca Cooke, has tried to seize the political moment by talking about Van Orden’s ties to Washington. 

“There are so many folks in D.C. that are so far left or so far right, they can’t work across the aisle to get things done,” she said. “I think that that’s what voters are looking for. Somebody like Derrick Van Orden is not one of those types of unifiers.”

‘Outsider’ pitch a key ingredient to winning in western Wisconsin 

Anthony Chergosky, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, said it’s not surprising to see Van Orden try to hang on to his outsider status in the western Wisconsin swing district. 

He said Congress is unpopular with voters, and many people believe a political outsider will have a better understanding of what the district needs. Chergosky said the outsider label explains a lot about the region’s voting history, including its past support of former Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

“I often ask myself, what can explain an area that votes strongly for Obama twice and then goes the other way, going for Trump twice?,” Chergosky said. “The best I can do is to say that this area responds to the outsider label quite well.”

Van Orden has been a vocal supporter of Trump since his first unsuccessful bid for Congress in 2020. He said he was inspired to run against former Democratic Congressman Ron Kind because of Kind’s vote to impeach the former president.

When Trump held a rally in Van Orden’s hometown this September, the former president endorsed Van Orden, calling him “an incredible congressman” who is “so respected in Washington.”

During first term, Van Orden’s outspoken approach turned heads

Van Orden also shares Trump’s reputation as a political firebrand. He was one of several Republicans to heckle President Joe Biden during his State of the Union speech in March, yelling the word “lies” when Biden took a shot at Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He’s also been unafraid to confront members of his own party. He traded insults with U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida in April. Van Orden confirmed to Spectrum News that he called Gaetz “tubby” in response to the Florida congressman calling him a “squish,” an insult meant to imply he was not committed to Republican positions.

Van Orden received the most backlash for his aggressive chastisement of a group of high school-age Senate pages in July 2023. The pages reported that Van Orden swore at them for lying on the floor of the Capitol Rotunda to take a picture of the historic dome ceiling, reportedly calling the teens “jackasses” and “lazy s—-.”

The incident drew bipartisan scolding from Congressional leadership, but Van Orden stood by his behavior. In a statement the following day, he said the Capitol is “a symbol of the sacrifice our servicemen and women have made for this country and should never be treated like a frat house common room.”

Despite his combative style, Van Orden’s voting record is moderate when compared to other Wisconsin Republicans in Congress. A summary of 2023 votes in the House by the political website 538 dubbed Van Orden part of a group of “compromise conservatives.” During the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this summer, he told reporters that the way national media reports on him fails to acknowledge “how many Democrat friends” he has in Congress.

Chergosky said Van Orden’s voting record reflects the region’s history as a swing district and its long held preference for more moderate views.

“(He) has the incentive to try to establish a brand that is a bit more ideologically middle of the road,” Chergosky said.

Van Orden has been most active on veterans issues, introducing more than a dozen bills related to education and employment opportunities for vets. The retired Navy SEAL also sponsored legislation with Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin to rename the Tomah VA Medical Center after Jason Simcakowski, a veteran who died at the facility after being overprescribed opioids.

Cooke vies for outsider brand, appeals to swing voters

For her part, Cooke has worked to establish her own version of the political outsider brand.

She founded a regional nonprofit supporting women-led businesses and has served on the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation board. But Cooke likes to talk about her upbringing on her family’s dairy farm, and the fact that she works part-time as a waitress in her hometown of Eau Claire.

“So much of my background is really rooted in lived experiences that I think everyday folks can connect with and that they have been connecting with,” Cooke told reporters at a recent press event.

She has tried to present herself as a “middle of the road” candidate, and has appealed to independents and moderate voters on both sides of the aisle since the start of her campaign.

Cooke has continued to criticize Van Orden for his presence at the Trump rally prior to the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and said Van Orden’s outbursts in Congress during his first term “is not the decorum that we want to see from a member of Congress.”

Van Orden has tried to discredit Cooke by labeling her as the “political insider” in the race, pointing to her history as a campaign fundraiser for congressional candidates in other states like California. He frequently posts on Cooke’s campaign Facebook page, arguing with her supporters in the comments.

Cooke says she’s running to represent the working class in Congress. Her top issues in this year’s race have been lowering health care costs, protecting abortion rights and supporting family farms.

In divided 3rd District, voters split Van Orden’s approach

Looking out over the Mississippi River in downtown La Crosse, Paul Krause, a voter who lives in the city, told WPR Van Orden’s attention to veterans issues and his support for law enforcement is important for the district. Krause feels like the congressman’s less polished tone is a product of his time spent as a Navy SEAL.

“I think often he’s just very honest and forthright in terms of what he has to say,” Krause said. “It maybe rubs people the wrong way, but that’s kind of up to where you’re at. I don’t hold anything against him for his outspokenness and direct (message), if a little off color.”

Krause said he appreciates that Van Orden isn’t strictly loyal to his party, saying he’s “bipartisan in his criticism.”

“So if he’s an insider, he’s an outsider insider,” Krause said.

But Sarah Popian, a voter from outside of Richland Center, feels like Van Orden’s aggressive style doesn’t represent the people of western Wisconsin. While shopping at the Viroqua Farmers Market, she described Van Orden as “abrasive” and said she doesn’t feel like he’s approachable to his constituents.

“I may not agree with all of Rebecca Cooke’s stuff either but she does seem to be that approachable, able to talk to, able to listen to without being talked down to,” Popian said.

The 3rd District remains competitive but has been leaning conservative

Democrats held the 3rd Congressional District for years, thanks in part to Kind, who built his own brand as an independent-minded Democrat, and had a knack for fending off GOP challengers.

But the sprawling district, which covers all or parts of 19 counties, includes a large number of rural voters, a demographic where the GOP has dominated in the age of Trump.

Still, by the numbers, the 3rd District remains within reach for both parties. It’s one of just two competitive seats under the state’s current congressional map, the other being the 1st Congressional District in southeast Wisconsin.

In the 2022 election, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers carried the 3rd District by less than one percentage point. Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson also carried the district, though he won it by nearly 6 points.

Van Orden won his first election against Democratic state Sen. Brad Pfaff of Onalaska by less than 4 percentage points, which was much closer than many political observers had expected. That included national Democratic groups, who pulled their money from the race in the closing weeks of the campaign, a move Pfaff argued may have cost his party the election.

When it comes to fundraising this campaign cycle, Van Orden has raised about $4.8 million while Cooke has raised about $4.6 million, according to the most recent reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Cooke’s total included a recent surge of about $2.6 million raised between July 25 and Sept. 30, while Van Orden took in $1.4 million during that period.

Wisconsin’s 3rd District is one of a handful of races that could decide who controls the U.S. House, where Republicans currently hold a narrow majority.

Chergosky said it’s hard to say who voters will ultimately see as the “outsider” candidate, and whether the title will ultimately matter in an increasingly partisan political climate.

“How much cross party voting will we even see in this district? My guess is not much,” he said.

Given the district’s recent support of Trump, Chergosky said Cooke’s campaign knows that she will need to win over at least a few swing voters in order to win this year’s election.