GOP businessman Berrien discusses candidacy for governor
'A big part of leadership is vision, and seeing a better future, and being able to articulate and craft a plan to get there,' Berrien told the Leader-Telegram on Tuesday. 'I've always been a team guy, in Seal Team Six. It's the mindset of building a team, aligning the team, and leading the team.'
Berrien, 56, a suburban Milwaukee businessman and former Navy SEAL, announced last week his candidacy for governor. He is the second Republican to announce a run. Washington County executive Josh Schoemann, 43, announced his candidacy in May, and he stopped at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair last week. A Republican primary will be held Aug. 11, 2026, ahead of the November 2026 election.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, 73, has indicated he will announce in coming weeks if he will seek a third term.
Berrien served nine years as a Navy SEAL and has been owner and CEO of Pindel Global Precision and Liberty Precision, manufacturers of precision-machined components in New Berlin, a Milwaukee suburb, for the past 13 years. Bringing back jobs to Wisconsin was one of the topics he stressed during the 30-minute interview.
'We want to help them create more value and capture more value,' he said. 'My vision for Wisconsin is prosperity for everyone, through work. Wisconsin needs to be open for business again. We need to help the businesses that are already here, and attract new businesses.'
Berrien said both the military and being a businessman has shaped his character. Berrien served in the military from 1991 to 1999 and he served alongside U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Prairie du Chien.)
'It's about building America and hiring American, and taking the fight to China,' Berrien said during a Zoom call. He said President Donald Trump is having success with the economy. 'He's trying to take back Washington, and I'm trying to take back Madison. We should be the manufacturing powerhouse again.'
Berrien was critical of the new 2025-27 biennial budget, and he contends the state has taken a step backwards in education under Gov. Evers.
'It does feel like the gears are in reverse under the governor's leadership with K-12 standards and the performance of students,' he said. 'Our schools need to be excellent, full stop. That needs to be the reputation. He was supposed to be the education governor, and education is going in reverse.'
Berrien added that the state needs to set the pace on AI and make sure Wisconsinites benefit from those new technologies.
He added: 'I think about the recent budget, and I think it shows why we need a Republican governor. There wouldn't have been a need for so many compromises.'
Berrien said he started contemplating the run at the end of last year. So, he has started hitting the road to meet Wisconsin residents.
'I'm looking forward to all the conversations with meetings and chats all across Wisconsin. I like people and I like connecting with people,' he said.
Berrien issued a press release Tuesday, announcing he has purchased about $400,000 in cable TV, radio and online ads.
'I think it's important to help define myself for listeners and viewers,' he said. 'I come from manufacturing, I don't come from the world of politics. My name is not front and center for most folks. Those ads can be little touchpoints. We can talk about Harleys, or shooting, or manufacturing.'
Berrien is positioning himself as a staunch backer of President Donald Trump in his first ads of the race. They are airing statewide, but with an emphasis on Milwaukee and Green Bay, his campaign said. The largest number of Republican voters in the state are in the Milwaukee media market, and Green Bay is a critical GOP area, especially in primaries.
In the ads, Berrien calls himself 'an outsider and a businessman just like President Trump.' Berrien says he's running for governor to 'advance the Trump agenda, shake up Madison and put Wisconsin citizens first.'
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin issued a press release Tuesday, criticizing Berrien for expressing support for Trump's tariffs.
'Bill Berrien is so desperate to win Trump's affections that he wants to double down on the president's failed tariff war by slapping taxes on goods from other states like Iowa — this is a uniquely stupid idea that will further raise prices for Wisconsin's farmers and families,' said Philip Shulman, Democratic Party of Wisconsin communications director. 'While Bill Berrien may have the money to spend nearly half a million dollars on ads showing his allegiance to Trump, working families are trying to figure out how to balance their checkbooks as a result of Trump's tariffs, which will only get worse if Berrien is elected and gets his way.'
While Berrien has shown support for Trump, some conservative talk radio hosts have questioned some of Berrien's older comments. Berrien criticized Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and said during an August 2020 interview with Fox Business that he hadn't decided whether to support Trump for president that year. In 2024, Berrien supported former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley's run for president in the GOP primary and donated more than $30,000 to her campaign.
Berrien was also a member of the bipartisan group Democracy Found, which advocates for using ranked-choice voting and making primaries nonpartisan, but Berrien told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week that he no longer supports those ideas.
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