Wisconsin voters will cast their ballots in just under a month to elect a new judge for the state's supreme court, choosing between liberal-backed Chris Taylor and conservative-backed Maria Lazar on April 7.
This comes after incumbent Justice Rebecca Bradley — who was appointed by former Republican Gov. Scott Walker and then elected for a 10-year term in 2016 — announced she would not seek reelection last August.
Justice Susan Crawford was elected last Spring in the most expensive judicial race in U.S. history, maintaining the court’s liberal majority which flipped for the first time in 15 years after justice Janet Proteceiewicz’s victory in 2023. Liberal candidates have won four of the last five Supreme Court elections.
The court will maintain its liberal majority despite who wins this election, but if Taylor wins it the court’s liberal majority would be solidified for the next 15 years and if Lazar wins, conservatives would still continue to be the minority on the court.
Chris Taylor
Judge Chris Taylor began her career working as a private attorney for law firms in Milwaukee and Madison. She then became an attorney and policy director for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin in 2003.
Taylor also served as a Democrat in the state Assembly from 2011 to 2020, representing parts of Madison. In her time as state representative, she supported laws that upheld abortion access, supported University of Wisconsin-Madison sexual assault and harrassment victims and regulated law enforcement’s use of force.
Taylor was appointed to the Dane County Circuit Court in 2020 by Gov. Tony Evers and elected a year later. She was then elected to the state’s Court of Appeals in 2023.
Taylor has positioned herself as an impartial candidate that criticizes the involvement of politics within the legal system, despite her time as a state legislator.
She believes Wisconsinites should have free and equal access to the state courts system, according to her website. Taylor has spoken in support of public hearings to “strengthen” current recusal rules, which ensure judges abstain from cases where they have a conflict of interest.
Following public backlash surrounding Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s involvement in Minnesota, Taylor reaffirms the state court’s ability to hold people accountable saying the state constitution applies to everyone.
Taylor is endorsed by Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin, current Supreme Court Justices Rebecca Dallet, Janet Protasiewicz and Susan Crawford and Chief Justice Jill Karofsky. The Wisconsin Democrats, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO have also endorsed Taylor.
Maria Lazar
Judge Maria Lazar worked in private Milwaukee law firms for 20 years before serving as Wisconsin assistant attorney general from 2010 to 2015. Lazar was elected to the Waukesha County Circuit Court in 2015 and the Wisconsin Court of Appeals in 2022.
Lazar also served on Waukesha County’s Drug Treatment Court, where she said she balanced her role as a judge with helping protect the public.
Lazar said she sees her campaign as a chance to also bring impartiality to the bench, saying last spring’s election was deeply politicized. Lazar also highlights her lack of belonging to a political party believing it gives her an opportunity to be a fairer judge.
As a judge, Lazar is a firm believer in originalism — the idea that the Constitution should be interpreted in the context of how it was written instead of adapting it to modern needs. Lazar also said she believes judges should not be “legislating from the bench.”
An example of this, she said, is cases regarding abortion rights, which have become a hot legislative topic in Wisconsin since the Dobbs decision in 2022 removed federal abortion protections.
Lazar also said issues involving ICE, in light of recent incidents in Minnesota, should be handled in federal, not state courts.
Republican U.S. Reps. Bryan Steil, Derrick Van Orden, Scott Fitzgerald, Glenn Grothman, Tony Wied and Tom Tiffany, the party’s gubernatorial frontrunner, have endorsed Lazar.
Staff writer
