Democrat establishment strikes back as socialist candidate downed in battleground primary

MADISON, Wis - The left wing suffered a high-profile setback on Tuesday at the hands of the center-left establishment in their ongoing battle for the ideological future of the party.

Seven days after far-left candidate Abdul El-Sayed narrowly edged out more moderate Rep. Haley Stevens in battleground Michigan's Democratic Senate primary, state Rep. Francesca Hong on Tuesday was upset in her bid to capture the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in Wisconsin, another crucial swing state.

Hong, a state lawmaker from Madison, Wisconsin and a Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member, was defeated by Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, the Associated Press reports.

Crowley will face off in the general election against likely Republican nominee Rep. Tom Tiffany, a hard-right House Freedom Caucus member who is backed by President Donald Trump. The race is considered a top flip opportunity for the GOP.

Crowley was heavily backed by retiring Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, with both warning that a Hong primary victory could jeopardize Democratic control of the governor's office.

The primary was closely watched as an early test of whether Wisconsin Democrats favored the party's progressive wing or its establishment, with the winner advancing to a high-stakes general election in one of the nation's premier battleground states.

Meanwhile, pro-GOP super PACs, including one aligned with the Republican Governors Association, shelled out millions of dollars to boost Hong in the primary, because they view her as the weakest Democratic candidate.

In a Fox News Digital interview on the eve of the primary, Tiffany pointed to his expected general election showdown with Hong and said his state would be "the firewall... We'll be the place that stops socialism."