From Wisconsin conservative James Wigderson:
The decision not to run for Senate was made before the Wisconsin Supreme Court election when Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Dallet (D-Milwaukee), the liberal candidate, defeated Sauk County Judge Michael Screnock, the conservative candidate, according to Hovde.
“The decision was made before that. As I said, it was almost a week and a half before and then we finalized the decision on Sunday, so I didn’t know the results,” Hovde told Gousha. “But I clearly paid attention. You’re always looking at the political climate and, yeah, this could be a tough political climate.”
Hovde also said the passage of the recent spending bill influenced his decision, saying he opposed it because it increased the national debt. “Am I going to spend the next six years of my life on the Senate floor making that argument where nobody listens?” Hovde asked. “Maybe I wait and run at some point in the future when the country’s dealing with these problems and has to address them.”