Wisconsin voters are set to decide, in five weeks and six days, a rematch between Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul and Republican Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric Toney — the same two candidates who fought to a razor-thin finish in 2022. The 2026 contest pits Kaul's record of high-profile litigation against Toney's argument that the state's top law enforcement office has neglected the operational basics of criminal justice.
As reported by FOX6 News Milwaukee, the race is a direct rematch of the 2022 election, when Kaul narrowly defeated Toney by just 1.33 percentage points, according to Ballotpedia. That narrow margin set up a sequel that both campaigns have been building toward for months.
Toney formally launched his second bid for attorney general in October 2025 at the Waukesha County Courthouse, centering his campaign on state crime lab performance, fentanyl trafficking, and violent crime in Milwaukee, per Wisconsin Right Now. Hoodline previously covered Toney’s campaign kickoff in detail. Toney has served as Fond du Lac County District Attorney since 2013 and previously led the Wisconsin District Attorneys Association, according to Toney's campaign website.
Crime Lab Delays Fuel Toney's Critique
Toney's operational argument leans heavily on crime lab turnaround times. Average evidence turnaround times at Wisconsin state crime labs rose from 39 days in fiscal year 2019-20 to 58 days in fiscal year 2022-23. That statistic has become a central talking point for Toney as he argues that administrative inefficiency at the Department of Justice is compromising local law enforcement's ability to close cases.
Kaul, for his part, opted to seek a third term as attorney general in 2026 rather than enter the open Democratic primary for governor, a decision that keeps him at the helm of his ongoing legal fights against federal policy, per UpNorthNews.
Kaul's Legal Record Takes Center Stage
Kaul's tenure has been defined by aggressive use of the courts.
During his second term, Kaul joined more than 70 multi-state lawsuits challenging Trump administration policies, according to VernonReporter — a strategy Toney has criticized as partisan overreach.
Recent State Actions Under Kaul's Watch
Kaul's office has also been active on the environmental and separation-of-powers fronts in recent months. In April, Governor Tony Evers and Kaul filed a Dane County lawsuit challenging a 2018 lame-duck law that gave the Republican-led Joint Finance Committee veto power over DOJ civil lawsuit settlements, a fight Hoodline detailed in its report on the Madison court brawl. In June, Evers and Kaul announced a $10 million settlement with Tyco Fire Products over long-standing PFAS contamination in Marinette, requiring the company to fund drinking water solutions and remediation, as Hoodline reported in its coverage of the Marinette PFAS deal.
With Election Day 41 days away, the contest has settled into a clear framing: Kaul asking voters to reward his record on abortion access, election-related prosecutions, and federal pushback, while Toney asks them to weigh crime lab backlogs and public safety management against that broader legal agenda. The 2022 margin suggests the rematch could again come down to a fraction of a percentage point.
