A Wisconsin man who has been charged with making a bomb threat against the office of a Republican Senate candidate has donated to the campaign of the candidate’s Democratic opponent.
Joseph Quade, 72, was charged with making terrorist threats after sending a message to the Wisconsin campaign office of Eric Hovde, warning that it “might blow up” in an April 4 email, according to a report from the Wisconsin State Journal.
“Hey (EH), you think your building might blow up tomorrow? I don’t think you should have any of your people come to work,” read the message, according to the report, which added that the message was sent in a voice memo attached to an email.
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Wisconsin Republican Senate candidate Eric Hovde and Sen. Tammy Baldwin (Getty Images)
Quade reportedly later told police that he did not remember sending the message, but admitted that he can get “a little political” when he drinks and there was a chance he was responsible for the threat.
Hovde, a Wisconsin businessman, is seeking to unseat incumbent Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. According to Federal Elections Commission data reviewed by Fox News Digital, Quade was a financial backer of the Baldwin campaign, making two donations of $25 and one of $50 to support the senator’s re-election bid. His most recent donation, for $25, was on Dec. 29.
Republican Senate candidate Eric Hovde speaks at a rally hosted by President Trump on April 2, 2024, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Reached for comment by Fox News Digital, a Baldwin campaign spokesperson said that “violence has no place in our politics and anyone who threatens violence has no place in our campaign.”
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“We will be donating this individual’s contributions to charity,” the spokesperson, Andrew Mamo, said.
Democratic senators from Minnesota, from left, Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar join Tammy Baldwin at an event featuring President Biden at the University of Wisconsin-Superior on March 2, 2022.
Wisconsin, one of the country’s most important battlegrounds in 2024, will play an outsized role in determining the balance of power in Washington in November. Baldwin, who is seeking her third term, won her 2018 re-election bid by just under four percentage points and holds a similar lead in recent polling over Hovde, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.
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Quade faces a maximum of 3.5 years in prison if convicted. His next court appearance is set for May 2.
