Wisconsinites will vote for congressional candidates in the general election on Nov. 3, 2026. Two independents, two Democrats, a Republican and a Green Party candidate are all running for Wisconsin's 6th Congressional District.
All eight of Wisconsin's U.S. House seats are on the ballot. We compiled candidate information for four of those seats in WUWM's coverage area (Congressional Districts 1, 4, 5 and 6).
What do Wisconsin’s U.S. Congressional Representatives do?
The U.S. House of Representatives is made up of 435 representatives, and the number of representatives each state has is determined by population. Wisconsin is currently divided into eight congressional districts, each represented by a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
U.S. Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every even year. During their term, representatives write and vote on laws that govern every state in the U.S. and decide how federal tax dollars are spent.
The House is the larger of Congress’ two legislative bodies, and has the sole authority to impeach federal officials and elect the president in the case of an Electoral College tie.
What’s at stake?
This election will help decide which party controls the U.S. Congress. If Democrats gain control of the House and add to their number of seats, it could provide more of a check to the second Trump administration. A Democratic majority could try to pass affordability and anti-corruption legislation. If Republicans retain control of the House, they would make it easier for the Trump-Vance administration to enact legislation. This could allow them to pass conservative legislation and ensure that liberal legislation — like a law legalizing abortion nationwide — is unable to be enacted.
6th Congressional District
The 6th Congressional District (pictured in orange) includes a large swath of central and northeast Wisconsin, including Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Manitowoc and Sheboygan. The district has been a Republican stronghold for decades. Glenn Grothman, the incumbent, is running for reelection.
WUWM sent a questionnaire to the candidates. Their responses below may be edited for length and clarity.
Meet the candidates
Matthew Arendt (Wisconsin Green)
Arendt did not respond to WUWM's candidate questions. The information below is from his campaign website and previous news coverage.
Arendt's campaign website says that he is a certified public accountant who runs a tax and investment advisory firm. He is running for Congress as a Green Party candidate.
The website says his "red lines" are breaking up monopolies, supporting Medicare for All, supporting strong wages, stopping "forever wars," cutting ties with Israel, jailing people named in the Epstein files, halting AI data centers and "making Wall Street pay down the national debt."
He says, "I’m running because I’m tired of watching the same people benefit from a system that doesn’t work for most Americans. It’s time to change that."
More information is available in the platform section of his website.
Matthew Arendt campaign website
Amanda Bell (Democrat)
Why are you running for this office and what makes you qualified?
I was the deputy director of a three-state office of the US Geological Survey when DOGE began gutting federal services and agencies. I saw this administration destroying the agencies that protect our water, air, health and communities from the inside. I saw them firing employees without cause, cutting funding for research that protects communities from flooding, and cancelling contracts with partners to make sure our drinking water is safe. I have been a public servant for America for 24 years. I know how federal budgets work because I oversaw the $33 million budget for our center. I know how federal policies are drafted because I spent my career working with them and writing publications to support legislation.
What specific federal policies do you support to lower the cost of living in your district?
I support breaking up monopolies and corporate consolidation that is driving up prices on everything from groceries to eggs to seeds to healthcare. We must raise the minimum wage to a living wage and tie future raises to federal employee pay raises so it never stagnates again. I also support limits on private equity firms buying up single family homes, which is driving up the cost of housing and pricing families out of homeownership in communities across the 6th.
What will you do to secure federal funding for the state and in what priority areas?
My priorities are infrastructure, rural healthcare access, agricultural support, and expanding rural broadband. I spent my career working in and alongside federal agencies, so I know how the processes work to get funding to the communities that need it. I’d focus on making sure communities have funding to repair roads and bridges that are deteriorating. I would push for expanding healthcare access in rural areas that have lost hospitals or clinics and include incentives for healthcare providers to practice in the rural areas. I want to support family farms that face pressure from industrial development. And I will fight to get reliable broadband to families and small businesses that are still without.
Which Trump administration policies do you most support (if any) and which do you most oppose (if any)? What action would you take on these issues?
There is only one policy that I slightly support and that was the executive order to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, which opens the door to more medical research. But it stops short of any real reform and the bill that ended the federal government shutdown included a provision that makes selling hemp products illegal in November of 2026 will hurt Wisconsin farmers and businesses. For those that I oppose, there are numerous including the gutting of federal services and agencies by DOGE, the tariffs, the war in Iran, the cruel immigration enforcement, the support of the Israeli military, cutting food assistance programs, cutting subsidies for healthcare, giving tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy, among many other atrocities.
Please list any notable endorsements you’ve received in this race.
I have received endorsements from several former federal leaders, the American Small Business League, and Don’t Cheat Women, but I am not chasing endorsements as a campaign strategy. My focus is on talking directly to the people of the district instead of politicians or PACs. Voters deserve a representative who listens to them first, and that is where I’m putting my energy.
Elizabeth Anne Fitzgibbon (independent)
Fitzgibbon did not respond to WUWM's candidate questions. The information below is from her campaign website and previous news coverage.
Fitzgibbon's campaign says she is a "mother, neighbor and advocate." She says she was inspired to run for Congress after going through a divorce case which became complex, that she ended up appealing pro se to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court denied her petition.
Her campaign website says that through this, she realized "that almost every struggle families face - from the high cost of living to healthcare frustrations - stems from a government that has drifted away from the Constitution to serve its own interests."
It says her priorities are to lower everyday costs "by supporting policies that strengthen competition, reduce price-gouging, and put consumers ahead of corporate special interests," to protect Social Security and Medicare, reduce health care and prescription drug costs "by pushing for more transparency, competition, and affordability across the system," support small businesses and family farms and make housing more attainable.
Elizabeth Anne Fitzgibbon campaign website
Glenn Grothman (Republican, incumbent)
Grothman did not respond to WUWM's candidate questions. The information below is from his campaign website and previous news coverage.
Grothman has represented the 6th Congressional District since 2014 after serving for over 30 years in both the state Senate and state Assembly. He also is an attorney.
Grothman serves on the House Oversight and Reform, Budget, and Education and Workforce, and Judiciary Committees. He has a consistently conservative voting record. He voted for the Parental Bill of Rights Act, which, according to NPR "requires schools to notify parents that they have the right to review the curriculum and school budget, inspect books and other library materials, and receive information about any violent activity in the school." He introduced the CRACKDOWN Act, which aims to reduce improper payments to states for federal childcare programs. and he opposes federal investments in green energy and vehicle emissions standards, according to the League of Conservation Voters.
According to his website, Grothman's priorities are:
- Promote skills-based education.
- Keep open work centers for those with disabilities.
- Get rid of the marriage penalty for government assistance programs.
- Refinance student loans.
- Get more generic medication on the market.
- Restore integrity to our elections.
- Secure our borders and fix our broken immigration system.
Glenn Grothman campaign website
Brad Smith (Democrat)
Why are you running for this office and what makes you qualified?
The 6th district deserves leadership that is focused on real-life results. Lower Healthcare costs and increase accessibility, so families don’t have to worry about going broke when someone gets sick. Support education pathways and job training for every path, so people can build stable, well-paying careers here. Grow a fair economy that works for working families, not just those at the top. I’m committed to being present in the District, listening in towns, small businesses, farms, and community events, and ensuring those conversations directly shape how I vote. I’m running because we need to focus on practical problem solving for Wisconsin: lowering costs, expanding opportunity, and protecting the natural resources.
What specific federal policies do you support to lower the cost of living in your district?
1) Affordable Care Act: lower Rx drug prices by expanding Medicare drug negotiation, support a strong public option, and expand community health centers and telehealth to reduce costs, especially in rural areas. 2) Affordable housing: increase "missing middle" housing like duplexes and triplexes, limit Wall Street investors from buying entire neighborhoods, and expand pathways to homeownership for first-time buyers. 3) Pell Grants: strengthen apprenticeship and technical education programs, increase affordability of workforce retraining as technology changes our economy. 4) Local job growth: end subsidies for offshoring, attach strong job-retention reqs to federal incentives, support workers' right to organize, and enforce fair tax rates.
What will you do to secure federal funding for the state and in what priority areas?
I will be a hands-on advocate for bringing federal funding back to the 6th District and making sure our communities get their fair share. I will work directly with local governments, farmers, schools, technical colleges, nonprofits, and state agencies to identify needs, pursue grants, and cut through red tape. My priorities will be lowering costs and improving quality of life: affordable healthcare, rural hospitals and emergency services, roads, bridges, broadband, clean water, family farms, conservation, and workforce training through apprenticeships, technical education, and skilled trades. Federal funding should deliver results, and I will fight to bring those resources home.
Which Trump administration policies do you most support (if any) and which do you most oppose (if any)? What action would you take on these issues?
I support secure borders and secure elections, but I do not support using those issues to divide people or spread fear. Democratic and Republican presidents alike have recognized the need for border security, but the difference is whether we pair enforcement with practical, humane solutions. Trump’s approach has too often turned immigration into a political weapon, worsened a humanitarian crisis, and hurt Wisconsin industries, including agriculture, that depend on reliable legal immigration pathways. On voting, we should protect election systems, paper trails, audits, and local election workers while also making sure every eligible citizen can cast a ballot. Security should strengthen democracy, not undermine trust in it.
Please list any notable endorsements you’ve received in this race.
The breadth of endorsements shows we are building a serious, district-wide coalition rooted in public education, local government, working families, and practical problem-solving. 1) National Education Association and the Wisconsin Education Association Council: reflects strong support from educators, working families, and advocates for strong public schools. 2) Respected state and local leaders, including State Senators Melissa Ratcliff, Jodi Habush Sinykin, and Kristin Dassler-Alfheim; State Representatives Maureen McCarville, Andrew Hysell, and Karen DeSanto; and local officials including Sheboygan, Manitowoc, Menasha, Portage, Oshkosh, and county supervisors across Ozaukee, Columbia, and Fond du Lac counties.
Mike Thurow (independent)
Thurow did not respond to WUWM's candidate questions. The information below is from his campaign website and previous news coverage.
According to Thurow's campaign website, his employment history includes working at Healthcare for the Homeless for nearly a decade. He then became a professional firefighter in 2013, where he would respond to fires, medical emergencies, industrial accidents, and natural disasters. He eventually became fire captain and director of a HAZMAT team.
His website says that "seeing the American dream disappear at the hands of corrupt politicians from both parties and corporate interests pushed [him] to step forward [and run as an independent candidate for Congress]."
His platform includes: "making life cheaper, cutting taxes for the middle class and small businesses, taking on Big Pharma, taking on the banks and private equity, protecting Social Security, keeping the 6th Congressional District safe, demanding the dignity of work, AI regulation, regulating data centers, no more foreign wars and legalizing marijuana," among other stances.
More information is available at the platform section of his website.
