Woke Socialist Chef’s Absurd Bid to Run Wisconsin

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Defund the Cops Because They’re Racist, Then Watch the State Burn

Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist state representative from deep-blue Madison, is making a serious run at becoming Wisconsin’s next governor in 2026. This single mom, former chef, and bartender wants to “share the table” while pushing policies that would empty it for working families. Her record screams radical chic: abolish the police because they supposedly exist only to uphold white supremacy. In a battleground state that just helped deliver President Trump back to the White House, this kind of extremism should be electoral poison. Yet she’s somehow a frontrunner in the crowded Democratic primary. Wisconsin voters deserve to know exactly who they’re getting.

From Restaurant Kitchen to Socialist Caucus

Born in 1988 in Madison to Korean immigrant parents, Hong attended public schools, graduated from Madison West High, and briefly studied at the University of Wisconsin-Madison before dropping out. She worked her way up from dishwasher to executive chef, opened Morris Ramen, and now presents herself as a relatable working-class fighter. Elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 2020 as the first Asian American in that body, she represents the ultra-progressive 76th District and joined the Assembly Socialist Caucus.

She launched her gubernatorial campaign in September 2025 after Tony Evers opted out of a third term. Hong pitches herself as a “wild card” focused on public education, universal childcare, and rejecting corporate PAC money. Her platform screams standard democratic socialist fare: heavy government intervention for “working families,” more spending on social programs, and aggressive identity politics wrapped in folksy rhetoric.

The Police Abolition Obsession That Should Disqualify Her

Hong’s most toxic baggage centers on law enforcement. In 2020, she tweeted support for “defunding the police as a first step towards abolishing the police.” In 2021, after the Jacob Blake incident, she doubled down: “Police exist to uphold white supremacy. Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option.” She has repeatedly framed policing as inherently violent and rooted in systemic racism rather than public safety. Even now, facing questions as a statewide candidate, she refuses to fully walk it back, claiming “public safety is not synonymous with law enforcement.”

This isn’t ancient history from the 2020 riots. It’s core to her worldview. Wisconsinites in places like Milwaukee, Kenosha, and rural counties remember what happens when politicians treat cops as the enemy: crime spikes, businesses flee, and families suffer. Hong’s vision would empower the exact chaos that made cities unlivable under similar experiments elsewhere. Normal voters don’t want lectures about “carceral systems”—they want safe streets and responsive police.

Broader Platform: Socialism Dressed Up as Compassion

Beyond the cop-bashing, Hong pushes the full progressive wishlist. She champions massive investments in education and childcare, wealth redistribution themes, and “democracy” reforms that often translate to tilting rules against conservatives. As a member of the Socialist Caucus, she aligns with policies that expand government control over daily life while demonizing business and traditional institutions. Her campaign avoids corporate money but thrives on small-dollar progressive donors and endorsements from the far-left, including Ilhan Omar.

She’s energetic on social media and presents a compelling personal story, but substance reveals a candidate disconnected from the realities of swing-state Wisconsin. Farmers, manufacturers, and suburban parents aren’t lining up for more taxes, regulation, and experiments in “abolition.”

Her Chances: Strong in the Primary, Doomed in November

Early polling shows Hong performing well among Democrats. She’s often leading or near the top in surveys of the crowded primary field that includes Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Mandela Barnes, and others. Betting markets give her a solid shot at the nomination around 28-30 percent in recent reads. Her grassroots energy, name ID in Madison, and activist base give her momentum heading into the August 2026 primary.

But that’s where the good news for her ends. Wisconsin is a purple state that rejected the Harris-Biden disaster in 2024. A democratic socialist who wants to abolish police would be a dream general election opponent for Republicans—likely Rep. Tom Tiffany or a similar America First fighter. Head-to-head polls already show her trailing or barely competitive against GOP frontrunners. In a state with strong rural and suburban turnout, her radical record on crime, spending, and identity would trigger a backlash that makes Evers look moderate.

Democrats chasing the nomination risk nominating another unelectable ideologue while Trump-era momentum favors Republicans up and down the ballot. Hong’s appeal is narrow—confined to urban progressives and campus radicals. The rest of Wisconsin wants results on jobs, borders, schools, and safety, not lectures about systemic racism from someone who thinks cops are the problem.

This race is another test of whether Democrats learned anything from their 2024 shellacking. Hong represents the worst impulses of the modern left: grievance, government expansion, and contempt for law enforcement. Wisconsin voters have a clear choice coming. They can embrace the chef serving up socialist failure or stick with the America First recipe that’s actually delivering for working people. The smart money says the radicals get sent back to the kitchen.