Tens of millions of dollars flooding into a state election. A nakedly political candidate for a judgeship. Huge policy stakes for a key battleground state.
Two years ago, a race for the Wisconsin Supreme Court vividly demonstrated how local elections that once flew under the radar were becoming expensive, nationalized and highly partisan affairs.
Now, Democrats and Republicans in Wisconsin are preparing for yet another contest in April that will again determine control of the state’s top court — and with it the fate of abortion rights, labor rights and two congressional districts.
The race is likely to be even more partisan, negative and expensive than the 2023 election, whose $56 million price tag shattered national spending records for a judicial contest….
Representative Tom Tiffany, who represents northern Wisconsin, was among several Republicans who said the Supreme Court election was more important than the state’s 2026 governor’s race.
“There’s a virtual guarantee that they will overturn the congressional maps if Ms. Crawford wins this race,” Mr. Tiffany said. “It’s no longer an academic exercise that this is what could happen. This is what is happening.”
Republicans have pointed to a weak candidate and a divisive primary in their 2023 Supreme Court defeat, when a conservative former justice, Dan Kelly, lost by 11 percentage points to Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal Milwaukee County judge.
A larger factor was Justice Protasiewicz’s decision to accept an endorsement and funding from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, which funneled $10 million to her campaign, while Mr. Kelly declined direct funding from the Republican Party of Wisconsin. He relied instead on outside groups and super PACs, which spent less and paid far more for television advertising than he could have as a candidate.
Brian Schimming, the Wisconsin Republican chairman, said he had maintained most of the party infrastructure that won the state for Mr. Trump to help Judge Schimel. But more important, Mr. Schimming said, is how he hopes to funnel money from conservative donors through the state Republican Party, which can accept unlimited contributions and send the cash to endorsed candidates.
“This race is not Dan Kelly the sequel,” Mr. Schimming said. “The party is very, very committed to making sure that we are competitive in April.”…