'Lies from the darkest corners of the internet': Dem senator blasts losing MAGA candidate

One of Democrats' bright spots in the 2024 election was the re-election of Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who defeated Trump-backed businessman Eric Hovde even as Trump narrowly carried the state. But Hovde is in no mood to acknowledge his loss, complaining that it wasn't legitimate because a far-right third-party candidate denied him votes to win.

“We’re certainly disappointed that the Democrats’ effort to siphon votes with a fraudulent candidate had a significant impact on the race, with those votes making up more than the entire margin of the race right now,” said Hovde last week in a news release, referring to Thomas Leager, an extreme pro-gun candidate who had ties to the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and received some funding to run from Democratic donors. “We will continue to monitor returns and make sure that every vote is counted.”

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Baldwin, though, hit back on Tuesday with a post to X.

"Eric Hovde is spreading lies from the darkest corners of the internet to undercut our free and fair elections," she wrote. "Wisconsin voters made their voices heard. It's time for Hovde to stop this disgusting attack on our democracy and concede."

Throughout the election cycle, Hovde, who runs real estate development and banking companies, has pushed conspiracy theories about the electoral process, at one point claiming the voting turnout rate out of Wisconsin nursing homes couldn't possibly be correct because too many residents there are close to death.

Hovde also faced criticism from Wisconsin Democrats after his bank was found to have done business with a Mexican institution known for working with drug cartels. He was also accused in ads of taking in "rigged" government subsidies and hiding money in overseas tax shelters, an accusation which prompted him to sue several TV stations that ran it.