‘Defund Then Abolish’: A Leading Democrat in Wisconsin Governor’s Race Urged Abolishing Police

Years after mayors from Democratic cities reversed course on calls to defund police departments, one of the leading Democratic candidates for governor of Wisconsin is running with a starkly different record: she didn’t just back defunding police — she called to abolish them. And unlike many in her party, she has neither deleted those posts nor renounced them.

Francesca Hong has repeatedly called for abolishing police departments, according to a CNN KFile review of her social media posts, interviews and statements.

Hong, a 37-year-old state representative and democratic socialist, wrote on X in 2020 she supported “defunding the police as a first step towards abolishing the police.” She later argued in 2021 that “police exist to uphold white supremacy. Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option.”

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In a statement to CNN, Hong did not disavow her past support for abolishing police departments, calling it part of a “wider conversation around police abolition” rooted in her belief that “the current system is not working.” While she said she does not support “arbitrary cuts” to public safety budgets and would not pursue them as governor, she also questioned whether current police spending levels are an “optimal or efficient” use of resources.

Asked directly if she still supported police abolition, Hong said in a statement, “While I envision a world where public safety is not synonymous with law enforcement, I recognize that this paradigm shift is a very long term vision and my focus is building systems of care for now and for our future.”

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A former chef and restaurant owner, Hong entered politics in 2020 by launching a campaign in a crowded primary for a Wisconsin State Assembly seat representing parts of Madison. She successfully ran during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in part by leaning into her background as a small restaurant owner just as the culinary industry was hit hardest by the pandemic.

She is also a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

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Her Twitter bio, which for years placed her location as “Occupied Ho-Chunk Land” – a Native American people whose historic territory included parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois – was changed sometime after March 2023 to simply read “Wisconsin, USA.”

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Even after assuming office in 2021, Hong maintained support for abolishing police.

In posts in 2021, Hong called to “abolish the police state” and argued that “reform has never been the answer.” In one radio interview, she claimed that police operate under a “false umbrella of providing law and order.”

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