All four liberal justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court are backing Dane County Judge Susan Crawford in a race that could determine the ideological leaning of the court once again.
Last month, liberal-leaning Justice Ann Walsh Bradley announced she would retire from the court, which presently has a 4-3 liberal majority. Crawford will likely face conservative Waukesha County Circuit judge and former Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel in the 2025 election.
“Today, we’re finally delivering on that promise and making decisions rooted in the law and our constitution — we can’t risk going backward. I’m proud to endorse Judge Susan Crawford because I know she shares our belief in a justice system that gives everyone a fair shot,” Justice Janet Protasiewicz said. Justices Rebecca Dallet, Jill Karofsky, and Bradley also pledged their support.
Protasiewicz was elected to her role in 2023 in what was Wisconsin’s most expensive Supreme Court election. Her win shifted the ideological balance of the court for the first time in 15 years.
While experts believe endorsements may not sway the election, they could help Crawford raise money in what is expected to be another expensive race. In 2023, both Protasiewicz and her opponent spent $51.06 million.
“In terms of the timing, it is unusual, and probably even extraordinary,” Janine Geske, a former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice and Marquette University Law School professor, told Wisconsin Public Radio. “I think that people are feeling like they gotta get in the race early and work hard, because if you have to raise that kind of money, it’s going to take substantial time.”
Schimel announced his candidacy six months ago and downplayed the importance of Crawford’s early endorsements in a statement. Schimel was the attorney general under then-Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI) from 2015 to 2019.
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“It’s not surprising that the leftists on the Supreme Court are supporting another leftist who is also hell bent on altering our way of life through a radical judiciary,” Schimel said. “Wisconsinites will be more compelled by my three decades in public safety and endorsements I’ve earned from the Milwaukee Police Association, Milwaukee Professional Firefighters Association, and a bipartisan group of two thirds of Wisconsin’s sheriffs.”
His campaign has not announced endorsements from any current or former justices.
