Finishing a distant second in fundraising, Milwaukee latecomer drops out of 1st CD primary

A Milwaukee alder who had proclaimed that  he would bring major fundraising power to the Democratic primary field in Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District this week dropped his bid.

Peter Burgelis signaled in a statement Wednesday he would back emergency room nurse Mitchell Berman, whose fundraising report showed he had raised more than 10 times as much money.

The 1st CD has been in Republican hands since 1994 and the current incumbent, U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil, has been judged likely having a safe reelection in the current midterms; Cook Political Report currently rates it as “Likely Republican.” Nevertheless, this year’s Democratic primary for the seat drew an unusually large field of potential challengers, with seven different residents of the district declaring their intention to run at one point or another.

Berman, a Racine County resident, entered the Democratic primary for the 1st CD in August and has been garnering support since then, including a United Auto Workers union endorsement.

Burgelis, although he lives outside the district, became the eighth person to enter the race when he declared his intention to run in April. (By then, at least three of the Democratic hopefuls had dropped out or abandoned the race.)

Burgelis told the Wisconsin Examiner at the time that he got into the race because it needed a candidate who could “raise money on a national level and attract national attention,” and that he believed none of the other contestants, including Berman, would be able to take on Steil, who has more than $5.5 million to draw on.

Four candidates — Berman, Burgelis, Lorenzo Santos and Miguel Aranda — filed enough signatures with the Wisconsin Elections Commission to gain ballot access in the 1st CD primary.

Berman raised $653,922 from July 1, 2025 through June 30 of this year, according to Federal Election Commission data updated Wednesday.

Burgelis, starting in April 2026, raised $54,562 through June 30, FEC data show.

On Wednesday, Burgelis announced he was suspending his campaign and was doing so “with the understanding that defeating Bryan Steil must be the Democratic Party’s top priority.”

In a press release he said that he has reached out to Berman to offer assistance as the campaign moves forward.