Incumbent Derrick Van Orden (R), Rebecca Cooke (D), Alexander Valiensi Kent (I), and Rustin Provance (I) are running in the general election for Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District on November 3, 2026.

Wisconsin Public Radio's staff wrote, "The 3rd District is the most competitive seat in Wisconsin and among the most competitive in the country."

This is a rematch of 2024, when Van Orden defeated Cooke 51% to 49%. In the same election, President Donald Trump (R) defeated Kamala Harris (D) in the district 53% to 46%. The district voted for President Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012, and for Trump in 2016, 2020, and 2024. The last Democrat to represent the district in Congress was Ron Kind (D), who left office in 2023. In 2020, Kind defeated Van Orden 51% to 49%.

Van Orden was first elected in 2022. He is campaigning on his record and says on affordability, "I supported the Working Families Tax Cuts, which put more money back in the pockets of working families, seniors and small businesses." Van Orden says Cooke "is exactly who the national Democrats wanted, an anointed candidate they know will carry water for the socialists who have taken over their party."

Cooke is a small business owner, a nonprofit owner, and a waitress. In her response to Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, she wrote about addressing the cost of living, saying she was focused on "[t]ackling the affordability crisis head-on with better wages, more economic opportunities and lower taxes for working families." Cooke has criticized Van Orden as being absent from the district: "He failed to host any sort of in-person town hall to be accountable for his votes, and we demand accountability in this district ... I'm going to be talking to the people that can vote in this district and motivating them to get out to vote myself."

Alexander Valiensi Kent (I) and Rustin Provance (I) are also running.

The outcome of this race will affect the partisan balance of the U.S. House of Representatives in the 120th Congress. All 435 U.S. House districts are up for election.

Currently, Republicans have a 219-212 majority with four vacancies in the U.S. House. To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here.