Cooke Pulls Out of Biased Debate | Eau Claire News

Eau Claire News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now! · Sep 18, 2026 · 1m

Rebecca Cooke is pulling out of a planned debate with opponent Derrick Van Orden, calling the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce host too biased—especially after their exec director made inflammatory claims about Democrats being “taken over by socialists and communists.” Cooke’s team sees it as a charade, and she’s also declined a gun owners’ debate, insisting on a truly neutral stage. This isn’t new—Van Orden skipped last year’s League of Women Voters debate, which Cooke’s camp criticized. With no structured debate likely on the horizon, voters in Wisconsin’s third district may miss a direct…