Francesca Hong says ‘do not write me in,’ instead support Democrats winning the trifecta

State Rep. Francesca Hong is telling her supporters to vote for Democrats up and down the ballot.

“We cannot risk giving up a potential trifecta to an election denying, pedophile protecting, war supporting, environmental killing fascist that is Tom Tiffany,” Hong said Saturday during her first stop on her We Make Better Possible Trifecta Tour.

Hong has publicly supported a Democratic trifecta — meaning Democrats control both chambers of the legislature and the governor’s office — since losing the primary to Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley in August.

The 37-year-old Madison native lost to the 40-year-old Milwaukee native by less than 4,000 votes, with Hong earning 311,740 votes and Crowley earning 315,413. Ahead of the general election on Nov. 3, it’s crucial that the party unite in order to defeat Republicans.

“I’m not here to tell you what to do, but I do gotta say please do not write me in or vote for me,” Hong said. “I’m no longer a candidate.

“It was never just about me. It was about you. It was about all of us. And it still is.”

In recent days, Hong posted a photo to social media of herself canvassing against Tiffany and the political antagonists jumped at the opportunity to say she wasn’t supporting Crowley. But Hong is clear, vote for Democrats up and down the ballot.

The closeness of the race and the fact that Crowley dropped out and returned in the final weeks with Gov. Tony Evers' endorsement will leave a bitter taste in some voters' mouths, conjuring memories of other democratic socialists’ attempts to gain power versus the establishment in prior elections.

“Not winning the primary was incredibly painful and we don’t have to hide that or pretend that it wasn’t,” Hong said. “But we also don’t have to believe that that’s our ending. We cannot accept that that’s our ending.”