Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson's victory Tuesday ended a Supreme Court race mostly free of the special-interest involvement that overwhelmed the previous two elections for the state's high court.
However, watchdog groups warn Supreme Court elections are still in need of reform.
In 2007 and 2008, Supreme Court Justices Annette Ziegler and Michael Gableman, respectively, defeated their opponents in races inundated with ""issue"" ads from outside groups, which ended up spending more than the candidates during the campaigns.
Tuesday's election is not a sign that Supreme Court races are moving away from the trend of being ""hijacked"" by outside interest groups, according to Mike McCabe, executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.
""I think what happened this year has a lot to do with the strength of the incumbent chief justice,"" McCabe said. ""She was seen as such a formidable candidate and was really seen as unbeatable. A lot of interest groups that would have been inclined to jump into this race didn't see it as a good investment of their time or money.""
The Greater Wisconsin Committee, the one interest group visible in this election, ran an ad in favor of Abrahamson, but McCabe said they probably did not affect the outcome.
Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin, agreed court elections are still vulnerable to the influence of outside groups. He said there is hope for substantial reform, citing a measure to disclose the spending of interest groups that is already before the state Legislature.
Heck also lauded the possibility of public financing for all elections, a measure he said leaders of both houses of the Legislature support.
Abrahamson raised close to $1.5 million, and her opponent, Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick, raised under $200,000. According to McCabe, her immense fundraising advantage ""short-changed"" voters because they only heard from one candidate.
""I think that's a sign that our Supreme Court elections are far from being in good health,"" McCabe said.
According to UW-Madison professor of political science Charles Franklin, special interests will likely play a part in the gubernatorial, congressional and Supreme Court elections in 2010 and 2011.
