Wausau debate for 7th Congressional GOP primary race Thursday night

A primary debate between Republican 7th Congressional candidates state senator Tom Tiffany and retired Army Captain Jason Church will take place Thursday night. It's hosted by the No Better Friend Corp., an conservative advocacy organization founded earlier this year by former U.S. Senate GOP candidate Kevin Nicholson.

The debate will take place at the Westwood Conference Center in Wausau from 7-9 pm.

Panelists for the debate include former conservative-backed Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gablemen, Scott Manley from Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, Nate Nelson from American Majority Action, Jessie Nicholson from No Better Friend, and CJ Szafir from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.

Wisconsin Manufactures and Commerce has spent $86,849 on GOP candidates since 2000 according to FollowtheMoney.org, and channeled more than $3 million into the WMC Jobs Fund, created by the WMC in 2016 as an independent expenditure fund.

Tom Tiffany and Jason Church have both made the ballot for a February primary, with Tiffany garnering 1982 signatures and Church getting 1620. A Democratic primary race is also shaping up with both Lawrence Dale and Tricia Zunker getting the needed signature amount to make the ballot.