Rebecca Cooke, the Democratic candidate running to unseat Rep. Derrick Van Orden in Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District, highlighted an endorsement from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) as she wages a high-stakes campaign in one of the most competitive House races in the country.
Van Orden, a Republican, won his seat with support from former President Donald Trump. Cooke narrowly lost to him in 2024, capturing 48.6% of the vote to Van Orden's 51.3%.
What the Right Is Saying
Republicans have pointed to incidents cited by the Department of Homeland Security where Americans were killed by undocumented immigrants who obtained CDLs. In April, Dawood Hussain, a Pakistani national, was charged with vehicular homicide after driving a commercial truck the wrong way down a highway, killing a U.S. citizen in a collision.
"Illegal aliens should not be operating 80,000-pound tractor-trailers on American roads," said Matthew J. Tragesser, a spokesperson for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). "This tragedy, like many others, was completely preventable."
Critics of Cooke and AFSCME's position argue that lax CDL standards create public safety risks. Van Orden has supported the Trump administration's enforcement priorities on immigration-related licensing issues.
What the Left Is Saying
AFSCME, which represents public-sector workers nationwide, has pushed back against stricter proof-of-citizenship requirements for commercial driver's licenses (CDLs). The union argues that current standards should remain open to maximize job opportunities in an industry facing workforce shortages.
"I'm honored to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the hard-working men and women of AFSCME," Cooke wrote in announcing the endorsement, highlighting her alignment with the labor organization's position on immigration-related licensing debates.
AFSCME has published guidance for businesses on how to navigate restrictions around CDLs for undocumented workers. The union has also filed legal challenges against federal requirements imposed through the Department of Transportation that would require states to verify lawful immigration status before issuing commercial licenses to truckers.
Progressive advocates argue that stricter CDL rules could exacerbate labor shortages in an industry critical to supply chains and that enforcement should focus on safety rather than immigration status alone.
What the Numbers Show
Over 186,600 Wisconsin residents are employed in the trucking industry, according to the Wisconsin Motor Carrier Association. That figure represents roughly 1 in every 14 jobs in the state, making Wisconsin's economy particularly sensitive to changes in commercial driver regulations.
In the 2024 House race, Van Orden defeated Cooke by a margin of 2.7 percentage points: 51.3% to 48.6%.
The Department of Transportation has moved toward requiring states to verify legal immigration status before issuing CDLs, reversing previous policies that allowed applicants to obtain licenses without such verification in many cases.
The Bottom Line
Cooke's embrace of AFSCME's position places her at the center of a contentious debate over public safety, labor policy, and immigration enforcement. Wisconsin's large trucking workforce means CDL regulations carry significant economic and political weight in the state.
The race is expected to remain competitive as both candidates seek to define the issue in terms favorable to their respective coalitions. Van Orden has positioned himself alongside Trump administration priorities on immigration enforcement, while Cooke is emphasizing labor support and progressive positions on worker access to commercial licensing.