The debate took place on the second day of in-person early voting. More than 55,000 people voted on the first day, compared with more than 33,000 at the same point before the 2022 governor’s race, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.

A Marquette University Law School poll released in late September put Crowley ahead 49% to 46% among likely voters, within the margin of error. About 5% were undecided.

Crowley repeatedly criticized Tiffany for supporting President Donald Trump’s agenda in Congress and for campaign support from wealthy Republican donors. He cited Tiffany’s votes against ending U.S. involvement in the Iran war and against blocking Trump’s tariffs, arguing those positions could drive up costs for Wisconsin residents.

Tiffany sought to distance his campaign from the president, whose approval rating among Wisconsin registered voters was 38% in the September Marquette poll. “I’m for Wisconsin,” he said, contrasting his message with Crowley’s criticism of Trump.

Campaign finance reports covering July through September showed the Republican Party of Wisconsin was Tiffany’s largest donor. Nearly 95% of the party’s $29 million in donations came from billionaires Diane Hendricks, founder of ABC Supply, and Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein, founders of Uline, according to the reports.

The candidates also disagreed on how to use Wisconsin’s roughly $3 billion budget surplus. Tiffany said he favors lasting reductions in property and income taxes rather than one-time rebates. He opposed increasing transportation user fees, introducing tolls or tying the gas tax to inflation. Crowley said he was open to new user fees and tolling to fund transportation projects, but also opposed indexing the gas tax.

On school vouchers, Crowley said he would keep both Milwaukee’s program and the statewide program, arguing that eliminating vouchers could push students into public schools that may not be prepared to serve them. He said the program began as assistance for low-income Milwaukee families but now also subsidizes private school tuition for families able to pay. Tiffany said he would consider raising the income limits for eligibility, but would review the details before deciding.

The candidates addressed a state sales tax exemption for data centers, estimated to cost more than $2 billion in lost revenue. Tiffany supports repealing it. Crowley said he had recently changed his position and would sign legislation repealing the exemption, after previously saying he would review it.

On abortion, Tiffany said he would not sign a so-called fetal heartbeat bill, which would prohibit abortions once cardiac activity is detected. He said he would retain Wisconsin’s current ban on abortions after 20 weeks, which he supported as a state lawmaker. Crowley did not say whether he would sign a bill allowing abortion without gestational limits. He said he supports a constitutional amendment protecting abortion rights and described later abortions as generally involving extreme circumstances.

Both candidates also made claims that fact-checkers have disputed. Tiffany said Crowley wanted to release half of Wisconsin’s prison population; Crowley has supported reducing the population by half over time through measures including marijuana legalization and jail diversion programs. Crowley said Tiffany’s vote for tax cuts specifically benefited data center operators. The tax provisions at issue were part of Trump’s tax law and applied to companies across multiple industries, not solely data centers.

The debate highlighted choices facing voters as early ballots are cast: whether to prioritize broad tax reductions or transportation funding options, how far to expand private-school subsidies, and what legal protections should govern abortion. The candidates also offered contrasting closing appeals, with Crowley emphasizing household costs and public services and Tiffany recounting the emergency landing of a plane on Lake Wausau and praising the first responders who arrived.