Wisconsin Governor Candidate Fires Campaign Manager Over Financial ‘Inaccuracies’

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez’s campaign said it is planning to report the inaccuracies to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission.

admin July 13, 2026 2 minutes read

Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, a Democrat running for governor, terminated her campaign manager over “serious mismanagement and inaccuracies,” according to a statement released Sunday.

“An initial review found that the manager filed inaccurate and incomplete campaign finance reports,” the campaign said in the release, without going into specifics.

Rodriguez “acted swiftly and decisively removed” the campaign manager, according to the release. It said campaign officials planned to contact the Wisconsin Ethics Commission on Monday to report and correct the inaccuracies.

Rodriguez’s campaign and the Wisconsin Ethics Commission did not immediately confirm that contact between the two parties had been established.

The campaign plans to hold a press conference at 3 p.m. CT for Rodriguez to “take questions on recent campaign developments and to outline her plan as the campaign continues forward.”

Rodriguez is facing a crowded field of other Democrats in the primary election on Aug. 11. Her challengers include state Rep. Francesca Hong, state Sen. Kelda Roys and former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes. The candidate who wins the Democratic nomination is likely to face Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is the leading Republican candidate.

Recent polling from Wedgewood Polls shows Hong and Barnes in a close race for the lead among likely Democratic primary voters, with Rodriguez trailing about 10 points behind the frontrunners and almost a quarter of voters undecided. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the Wisconsin gubernatorial race a “toss up.”

The candidates are running to replace Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who is not seeking a third term — though Wisconsin does not have term limits for its governors.