| State: | Wisconsin |
| District Number: | 3 |
| Image Caption: | Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023 |
| Representative: | Derrick Van Orden |
| Party: | Republican |
| Residence: | Prairie du Chien |
| English Area: | 13,565.50 |
| Percent Urban: | 43.15 |
| Percent Rural: | 56.85 |
| Population: | 741,433 |
| Population Year: | 2022 |
| Median Income: | $67,520[1] |
| Ethnicity Ref: | [2] |
| Percent White: | 89.1 |
| Percent Asian: | 2.3 |
| Percent Black: | 1.2 |
| Percent Native American: | 0.6 |
| Percent More Than One Race: | 3.1 |
| Percent Hispanic: | 3.3 |
| Percent Other Race: | 0.3 |
| Cpvi: | R+4[3] |
Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district covers most of the Driftless Area in southwestern and western Wisconsin. The district includes the cities of Eau Claire, La Crosse, and Stevens Point, as well as many Wisconsin-based exurbs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. It borders the states of Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. Republican Derrick Van Orden has represented the district since 2023.
The political nature of the district is moderate, given its combination of an overall rural and suburban character counterbalanced by two significant urban centers (Eau Claire and La Crosse) and the Twin Cities suburbs. It historically elected moderate Republicans; before Ron Kind's 1996 victory, only two Democrats represented it in the 20th century. Al Gore, John Kerry, and Barack Obama all carried the district at the presidential level; it then narrowly voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and again in 2020 with slightly increased margins, as a result, the Cook Partisan Voting Index adjusted the district's partisan lean in 2021 from "even" to R+4.
| County | Seat | Population | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adams | Friendship | 20,875 | |
| 11 | Buffalo | Alma | 13,302 | |
| 17 | Chippewa | Chippewa Falls | 66,865 | |
| 23 | Crawford | Prairie du Chien | 16,075 | |
| 33 | Dunn | Menomonie | 45,547 | |
| 35 | Eau Claire | Eau Claire | 106,452 | |
| 43 | Grant | Lancaster | 52,110 | |
| 53 | Jackson | Black River Falls | 21,121 | |
| 57 | Juneau | Mauston | 26,802 | |
| 63 | La Crosse | La Crosse | 120,433 | |
| 81 | Monroe | Sparta | 46,193 | |
| 91 | Pepin | Durand | 7,364 | |
| 93 | Pierce | Ellsworth | 42,587 | |
| 97 | Portage | Stevens Point | 70,468 | |
| 103 | Richland | Richland Center | 17,212 | |
| 121 | Trempealeau | Whitehall | 30,724 | |
| 123 | Vernon | Viroqua | 30,915 | |
| 141 | Wood | Wisconsin Rapids | 74,070 |
Adams, Arkdale, Dellwood, Friendship, Grand Marsh, Lake Arrowhead, Lake Camelot, Lake Sherwood, and Wisconsin Dells (Adams County section).
Alma, Buffalo City, Cochrane, Fountain City, Mondovi, and Nelson.
Chippewa Falls and Lake Hallie.
Bell Center, Eastman, Ferryville, Gays Mills, Lynxville, Mount Sterling, Prairie du Chien, Soldiers Grove, Steuben, and Wauzeka.
Boyceville, Colfax, Downing, Elk Mound, Knapp, Menomonie, Ridgeland, and Wheeler.
Altoona, Augusta, Eau Claire, Fairchild, and Fall Creek.
Bagley, Boscobel, Bloomington, Blue River, Cassville, Cuba City, Dickeyville, Fennimore, Hazel Green, Lancaster, Livingston, Montfort, Muscoda, Platteville, Potosi, and Tennyson.
Alma Center, Black River Falls, Hixton, Melrose, and Taylor.
Camp Douglas, Elroy, Hustler, Lyndon Station, Mauston, Union Center, and Wonewoc.
Bangor, Campbell, La Crosse, Holmen, Rockland, Onalaska, and West Salem.
Cashton, Kendall, Melvina, Norwalk, Oakdale, Sparta, Tomah, and Wilton.
Bay City, Ellsworth, Maiden Rock, Plum City, Prescott, River Falls (Pierce County side), Spring Valley (Pierce County side).
Almond, Amherst, Amherst Junction, Junction City, Nelsonville, Park Ridge, Plover, and Whiting.
Boaz, Cazenovia, Lone Rock, Richland Center, Viola, and Yuba.
Arcadia, Blair, Eleva, Ettrick, Galesville, Independence, Pigeon Falls, Osseo, Strum, Trempealeau, and Whitehall.
Chaseburg, Coon Valley, De Soto, Genoa, Hillsboro, La Farge, Ontario, Readstown, Stoddard, Viroqua, and Westby.
Biron, Milladore, Nekoosa, Port Edwards, Rudolph, and Vesper.
| Member | Party | Years | Cong ress | Electoral history | District | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District established March 4, 1849 | ||||||||
| align=left rowspan=2 | James Duane Doty | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1851 | Elected in 1848. Re-elected in 1850. Retired. | Brown, Calumet, Columbia, Dodge, Jefferson, Manitowoc, Marquette, Sheboygan, Washington, & Winnebago counties (& Door,, Kewaunee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, & Waushara counties created from this territory during the 1850s) | ||
| Independent Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853 | ||||||
| align=left | John B. Macy | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 | Elected in 1852. Lost re-election. | |||
| align=left rowspan=2 | Charles Billinghurst | Opposition | nowrap | March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857 | Elected in 1854. Re-elected in 1856. Lost re-election. | |||
| Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859 | ||||||
| align=left | Charles H. Larrabee | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861 | Elected in 1858. Lost re-election. | |||
| align=left | A. Scott Sloan | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1861 – March 3, 1863 | Elected in 1860. Retired. | |||
| align=left | Amasa Cobb | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1871 | Elected in 1862. Re-elected in 1864. Re-elected in 1866. Re-elected in 1868. Retired. | Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, Richland, & Sauk counties | ||
J. Allen Barber | Republican | March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1875 | Elected in 1870. Re-elected in 1872. Retired. | |||||
| Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, & Richland counties | ||||||||
| align=left | Henry S. Magoon | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877 | Elected in 1874. Lost renomination. | |||
| align=left | George Cochrane Hazelton | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883 | Elected in 1876. Re-elected in 1878. Re-elected in 1880. Lost renomination. | |||
| align=left | Burr W. Jones | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885 | Elected in 1882. Lost re-election. | Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, & Lafayette counties | ||
| align=left | Robert M. La Follette | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1891 | Elected in 1884. Re-elected in 1886. Re-elected in 1888. Lost re-election. | |||
| align=left | Allen R. Bushnell | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1893 | Elected in 1890. Retired. | |||
Joseph W. Babcock | Republican | March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1907 | Elected in 1892. Re-elected in 1894. Re-elected in 1896. Re-elected in 1898. Re-elected in 1900. Re-elected in 1902. Re-elected in 1904. Lost re-election. | Adams, Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties | ||||
| Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties | ||||||||
| align=left | James William Murphy | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1909 | Elected in 1906. Lost re-election. | |||
| align=left | Arthur W. Kopp | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1913 | Elected in 1908. Re-elected in 1910. Retired. | |||
| align=left | John M. Nelson | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1919 | Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1912. Re-elected in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Lost renomination. | Crawford, Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, & Richland counties | ||
| align=left | James G. Monahan | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1919 – March 3, 1921 | Elected in 1918. Lost renomination. | |||
| align=left | John M. Nelson | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1921 – March 3, 1933 | Elected in 1920. Re-elected in 1922. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1926. Re-elected in 1928. Re-elected in 1930. Lost renomination. | |||
| align=left rowspan=2 | Gardner R. Withrow | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1935 | Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1932. Re-elected in 1934. Re-elected in 1936. Lost re-election. | Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Juneau,, Lafayette, Monroe, Richland, Sauk, & Vernon counties | ||
| Progressive | nowrap | January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1939 | ||||||
| align=left | Harry W. Griswold | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1939 – July 4, 1939 | Elected in 1938. Died. | |||
| Vacant | nowrap | July 4, 1939 – January 3, 1941 | ||||||
| align=left | William H. Stevenson | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1949 | Elected in 1940. Re-elected in 1942. Re-elected in 1944. Re-elected in 1946. Lost renomination. | |||
| align=left | Gardner R. Withrow | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1961 | Elected in 1948. Re-elected in 1950. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1958. Retired. | |||
Vernon Wallace Thomson | Republican | January 3, 1961 – December 31, 1974 | Elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Re-elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1970. Re-elected in 1972. Lost re-election and resigned early. | |||||
| Buffalo, Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Jackson, Juneau,, Lafayette, Monroe, Pepin, Pierce, Richland, Sauk, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties | ||||||||
| Barron, Buffalo, Crawford, Dunn,, Grant, Jackson,, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Richland,, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties & | ||||||||
| Vacant | nowrap | December 31, 1974 – January 3, 1975 | ||||||
| align=left | Alvin Baldus | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1981 | Elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Lost re-election. | |||
Steve Gunderson | Republican | January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1997 | Elected in 1980. Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Re-elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Retired. | |||||
| Barron, Buffalo, Crawford, Dunn,, Grant, Jackson,, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Richland,, Trempealeau, & Vernon counties & | ||||||||
| 1993–2003 | ||||||||
Ron Kind | Democratic | January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2023 | Elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Re-elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Retired. | |||||
| 2003–2013 | ||||||||
| 2013–2023 | ||||||||
| align=left | Derrick Van Orden | Republican | January 3, 2023 – present | 118th | Elected in 2022. | 2023–present | ||
| Year | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002[4] | Democratic | 131,038 | 62.82% | Rep. | 69,955 | 33.54% | 208,581 | 61,083 | |||
| Lib. | 6,674 | 3.20% | |||||||||
| 2004[5] | Democratic | 204,856 | 56.43% | Rep. | 157,866 | 43.49% | 363,008 | 46,990 | |||
| 2006[6] | Democratic | 163,322 | 64.79% | Rep. | 88,523 | 35.12% | 252,087 | 74,799 | |||
| 2008[7] | Democratic | 225,208 | 63.19% | Rep. | 122,760 | 34.44% | 356,400 | 102,448 | |||
| Lib. | 8,236 | 2.31% | |||||||||
| 2010[8] | Democratic | 126,380 | 50.28% | Rep. | 116,838 | 46.49% | 251,340 | 9,542 | |||
| Ind. | 8,001 | 3.18% | |||||||||
| Year | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012[9] | Democratic | 217,712 | 64.08% | Rep. | 121,713 | 35.82% | 339,764 | 95,999 | ||||
| 2014[10] | Democratic | 155,368 | 56.46% | Rep. | 119,540 | 43.44% | 275,161 | 35,828 | ||||
| Ind. | 128 | 0.05% | ||||||||||
| 2016[11] | Democratic | 257,401 | 98.86% | Rep. | 169 | 0.06% | 260,370 | 254,601 | ||||
| 2018[12] | Democratic | 187,888 | 59.65% | Rep. | 126,980 | 40.31% | 314,989 | 60,908 | ||||
| 2020[13] | Democratic | 199,870 | 51.30% | Rep. | 189,524 | 48.64% | 389,618 | 10,346 | ||||
| Year | Office | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | President | Al Gore 49% – George W. Bush 46% | |
| 2004 | President | John Kerry 51% – George W. Bush 48% | |
| 2008 | President | Barack Obama 58% – John McCain 41% | |
| 2012 | President | Barack Obama 54.8% – Mitt Romney 43.8% | |
| 2014 | Governor | Scott Walker 50.1% – Mary Burke 48.52% | |
| 2016 | President | Donald Trump 49.3% – Hillary Clinton 44.8% | |
| Senator | Ron Johnson 49.2% – Russ Feingold 47% | ||
| 2018 | Senator | Tammy Baldwin 56.4% – Leah Vukmir 43.5% | |
| Governor | Tony Evers 49.8% – Scott Walker 47.9% | ||
| 2020 | President | Donald Trump 52% - Joe Biden 46% | |
| 2022 | Senator | Ron Johnson 52.8% – Mandela Barnes 47.1% | |
| Governor | Tony Evers 49.6% – Tim Michels 49.1% | ||
| 2023 | Supreme | Janet Protasiewicz 55% – Daniel Kelly 45% |