Fox Valley Initiative (FVI) held its monthly public forum on May 4, 2026 at Freedom Project Academy in Appleton, with the main focus being a review of the April 7, 2026 spring election results and pathways to improved conservative outcomes in future contests.
Easton, the 13-year-old winner of FVI’s scholarship to attend LEAD summer camp, briefly discussed his plans to be in the Air Force and fly C130’s and his respect for Alexander Hamilton as a favorite founding father.
Rebecca Kleefisch, former Wisconsin Lt. Governor and candidate for Governor, discussed her work with the 1848 Project. She reviewed the landslide loss of Maria Lazar in the recent State Supreme Court election but emphasized successes in 82% of the 1848 Project-supported local races. Her team is recruiting conservative candidates in 47 fall state legislative races, even in districts that lean heavily to the left. Kleefisch emphasized the importance of the “trickle-up” effect, where hard-working local candidates can increase turnout for state-wide candidates, such as Tom Tiffany for Governor. She specifically noted that Governor Evers has appointed District Attorneys in 28 counties, all up for re-election in 2028.
Morgan Bonwell, who founded the nationwide conservative consulting group Right Strategies in 2022 and does election work currently in 10 states, showed maps demonstrating a significant lack of rural turnout in elections not involving President Trump. She described the need to “activate” low-propensity but typically conservative rural voters with live phone calls and door knocking, versus the need to “persuade” suburban swing voters with digital ads and earned media. Both groups also need targeted mailers, but the message is tailored differently for rural versus urban voters. Bonwell also discussed using good data to identify early voters and to chase absentee voters with phone calls and follow-up post cards.
About Fox Valley Initiative
FVI has received 501c4 status and is changing its name to Fox Valley Conservatives (FVC). The mission of FVC is to inform and activate the voting public. The next monthly public forum of FVC will be on June 1, 2026, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. at the Freedom Project Academy in Appleton. Steve Goreham, author of four books on energy and climate change, and executive director of the Climate Science Coalition of America, will give a balanced presentation about climate change.