MADISON, Wis. (AP) - A political newcomer from a well-known Wisconsin family did not rule out a run for U.S. Senate as a Republican on Wednesday, issuing a statement criticizing Democratic incumbent Sen. Tammy Baldwin but stopping short of announcing a candidacy.
Nicole Schneider joins a growing list of potential Republican challengers to Baldwin in 2018 when she seeks re-election to a second term. The Republican field is seen as wide open after U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy, of Wausau, decided not to run for the seat.
Schneider is the daughter-in-law of the late Donald Schneider, the former head of Green Bay-based Schneider National Trucking, one of the country’s largest trucking companies known for its orange trucks.
Schneider broke her silence about a potential run less than a week after the trucking company on Friday filed paperwork for an initial public offering, a move that the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said would net members of the family $230 million. Nicole Schneider is married to one of five children of Don Schneider. None of the children are executives with the company.
Schneider responded to multiple inquiries from The Associated Press to address her interest in the race by saying, “My family and I are examining options to become more politically active and to champion the conservative causes we believe in.” She also took a couple swipes at Baldwin, saying “Senator Tammy Baldwin has spent her entire life advancing her own political career first in Madison and then in Washington. Clearly, Washington is broken and I believe Senator Baldwin is part of the problem.”
Baldwin’s campaign manager, Scott Spector, didn’t immediately reply to a message seeking comment. Democratic Party spokeswoman Gillian Drummond released a statement that praised Baldwin’s work but did not refer to Schneider’s interest in the race or the Republican field.
Jenni Dye, research director for the liberal group One Wisconsin Now, questioned whether Republicans were interested in Schneider “because they think her money can paper over their party’s flaws.”
Baldwin won election to the Senate in 2012 as then-President Barack Obama was re-elected to a second term. She faces re-election midway through President Donald Trump’s term and as Republican Gov. Scott Walker is expected to be running for a third term.
Schneider works as a research officer for Green Bay Area Catholic Education, Inc. and said in her statement that she has spent the past two decades “helping improve the lives of people in my community through supporting conservative causes, working in health care, education and social services.”
Other Republicans considering running for the seat include: Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke; state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald; state Sen. Leah Vukmir; state Rep. Dale Kooyenga; Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch; and businessmen Eric Hovde and Kevin Nicholson, a Marine veteran.
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