Democratic challenger Rebecca Cooke and Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden are trading accusations over a canceled debate.
The negotiations for a debate between Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden and Democratic challenger Rebecca Cooke collapsed in late September. This leaves Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District candidates without a scheduled face to face debate ahead of the November 3 election.
The event was organized through the La Crosse Chamber of Commerce. It ended in disagreement after both campaigns failed to settle on a date. Cooke accused Van Orden of abandoning negotiations, while the Van Orden campaign released a recording it said showed that Cooke’s representatives withdrew. Van Orden’s campaign offered 14 potential October dates, while Cooke’s campaign maintained that previously discussed dates had been rejected. (RELATED:Wisconsin Democratic Latino Caucus Vice Chair Removed After Sex-Offender History Surfaces)
During the recorded exchange, a Cooke campaign representative stated that the campaign would not continue negotiations because it believed they were being conducted in bad faith.
“I have now accepted four debate invitations. Rebecca Cooke has declined all four. Today, her campaign declined the La Crosse Chamber debate on a recorded call, and then she went online and outright lied that I was the one who walked away,” said Van Orden.
The dispute comes as Cooke faces criticism over her opposition to large-scale data center development and her past affiliations. Cooke has an affiliation with Third Way and previous involvement with the Wisconsin Technology Council. Van Orden’s campaign has also challenged Cooke’s portrayal of herself as a working-class political outsider, pointing to her experience in political consulting, fundraising, and her big corporation connections. (RELATED: Brewers Finish Historic Season With Franchise-Record 103 Wins)
Van Orden previously defeated Cooke in the 2024 election by just over 11,000 votes, about 51.4% of the electorate. Cooke earned the nomination again in 2026, when she defeated Eau Claire City Council member Emily Berge. Both campaigns have made data center development an election issue, accusing the opposing candidate of connections to policies or organizations benefiting the industry.
