The Democratic candidates for Wisconsin governor and attorney general remain COMPLETELY SILENT on the Democrats’ massive Reid Hoffman money haul and his Epstein ties.
Tom Tiffany and Eric Toney – the Republican candidates for Wisconsin governor and attorney general – called on the Democratic Party of Wisconsin to return $15 million from billionaire Reid Hoffman after new emails revealed Hoffman’s extensive ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Hoffman previously admitted visiting Epstein’s infamous island, and he worked to rehabilitate Epstein’s reputation AFTER Epstein’s conviction for soliciting prostitution for an underage girl. Hoffman’s name appears 2,600 times in the Epstein files recently released by the U.S. Department of Justice. Hoffman, the LinkedIn co-founder, has denied wrongdoing; he is the Wisconsin Democrats’ top donor since 2019. He last gave the party money on Dec. 24 (the Democrats frequently transfer money they receive to top political candidates).
Tiffany, the Republican candidate for governor of Wisconsin, called on the Democratic Party of Wisconsin “to return the millions of dollars it has received from Epstein-Island visitor Reid Hoffman.”
“Emails show Hoffman discussing visits to Epstein’s island, ranch, and apartment,” Tiffany added. “I voted to release the Epstein files for transparency, and now @WisDems must return Hoffman’s cash for transparency.” He questioned why Democratic gubernatorial candidates Sara Rodriguez, Mandela Barnes, and “the rest of the Dems” are “silent on this.”
Toney, the Fond du Lac County DA, called out Democrat Attorney General Josh Kaul. He wrote that Kaul “investigates crimes against kids, but Wisconsin has been waiting years for him to condemn $15 million of dirty money donated to @WisDems from a friend of a child sex offender. That money must be returned or donated to a charity helping trafficking victims and Kaul knows it.” Kaul, too, has remained completely silent amid the new Epstein revelations.
Toney has taken the lead on hammering the Epstein issue for years. For years, Hoffman’s links to Epstein have been well-known, yet Democrats kept taking his money and funneling it to their top political candidates. The new revelations, however, shed additional light on just how extensive his relationship with Epstein was. Hoffman wrote on X on Feb. 1, “Yes, interacting with Epstein post-conviction is something I deeply regret.” He claims he went to the island to fundraise for MIT.
In 2024, Toney wrote that Kaul “is our Attorney General that leads the @WisDOJ, responsible for significant ICAC investigations. I stood with him last year to help obtain more crime lab funding and today I’m asking him to stand with me and condemn these donations & demand the DPW return the money.” ICAC stands for the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program.
.@JoshKaulWI investigates crimes against kids, but WI has been waiting years for him to condemn $15 million of dirty money donated to @WisDems from a friend of a child sex offender. That money must be returned or donated to a charity helping trafficking victims and Kaul knows it. pic.twitter.com/vnvSzFtXmC
— Eric Toney (@EricJToney) February 2, 2026
Although the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Hoffman’s Epstein ties in 2023, with campaign season now in full swing, the newspaper – and the rest of the media – appear to be ignoring the new revelations, Tiffany’s and Toney’s comments, and the Democrats’ silence on them. It’s unclear why the news media have suddenly decided that the Democratic Party’s top donor’s Epstein ties are no longer news.
Tiffany cited Wisconsin Right Now’s investigative reporting in his statement.
“Since 2019, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin has accepted more than $15 million from LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, including another $100,000 in December, according to Wisconsin Right Now,” he wrote. “Mr. Hoffman is the single largest donor to the Wisconsin Democratic Party.
We documented the largesse through state campaign finance records. See the documents here.
Top Democratic Political Candidates Remain Silent About Reid Hoffman & Jeffrey Epstein
Wisconsin Right Now asked the state Democratic Party whether it will return the money. We also asked Rodriguez, Barnes, David Crowley, Joel Brennan, Missy Hughes, Francesca Hong, Kelda Roys, and AG Josh Kaul whether they will call on the Democratic Party to do so and pledge not to take Hoffman’s money.
None responded.
“Wisconsin Democrats have been bankrolled for years by Reid Hoffman, their largest donor, who remained connected to Jeffrey Epstein after he was a convicted sex offender and even traveled to his island,” Tiffany added. “The Democratic Party of Wisconsin must return Hoffman’s money, which they accepted as recently as December. If they refuse, it tells Wisconsinites everything they need to know about their so-called values.”
“With the release of the recent documents, which Congressman Tom Tiffany voted to make public, the New York Post reports that newly uncovered emails show Reid Hoffman discussing visits to Jeffrey Epstein’s private island, his New Mexico ranch, and his New York apartment. Mr. Hoffman even traveled to the island after Epstein’s conviction for a sex offense involving an underage girl,” Tiffany wrote.
Tiffany also raised the issue on X.
“Did @TheOtherMandela know that Epstein-pal Reid Hoffman, who visited the island after Epstein’s sex-offender conviction, was funneling money into his losing 2022 campaign via @WisDems? Hoffman was one of @WisDems’ biggest funders that year,” Tiffany wrote, referring to Democratic candidate for governor Mandela Barnes.
For starters, Epstein wrote an email to his assistant Saida Sapieva under the heading “Trip to the Island.” It says, “Reid will take a Virgin America Flight from SFO to Fort Lauderdale, departing at 8:20 am, landing at 4:40 pm.” There’s much, much more. A document submitted to Microsoft board members outlined Hoffman’s alleged interactions with Epstein in great detail (Hoffman remains on that board).
In one email, Epstein wrote that Hoffman should come to his ranch and island, exhorting, “Let’s play.” Hoffman wrote that he was busy with “China visits” but added, “possibly next year.” An email from Epstein to Elon Musk in 2014 reads, “Reid was on the island last weekend…”
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