The Wisconsin Supreme Court will fill a pivotal seat this spring, and voters now have the choice between the top two vote-getters in February’s primary election: former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly and Milwaukee County Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz.
Both candidates were in-studio for WTMJ Conversations and spoke about the campaign ahead of the April election.
Kelly, who held off a strong challenge from Waukesha County Court Judge Jennifer Dorrow, said he hopes his philosophy on the role of justice is clear to voters.
“I will apply the existing law to resolve cases to the extent that it’s consistent with our constitution,” Kelly said.
Kelly has consistently attacked Protasiewicz for wanting to be a “politician in a black robe,” saying she will put her personal viewpoints above the law. Protasiewicz disagrees with that interpretation of her intent.
“I’ve been very, very careful to make sure that everybody understands – no issues are pre-judged,” Protasiewicz said. “I’ve talked to people about what my values are, but no issues are pre-judged, and I look forward to really being able to evaluate these cases on their merits.”
This Supreme Court race has been widely seen as a proxy for Republicans and Democrats – with several key partisan issues likely to come before the court. One issue is abortion, which Protasiewicz has been clear about her personal views on. She said she would approach it like any other case, however.
“I’m going to take an open-minded look at it while applying the law and following the constitution,” she said.
Both candidates received endorsements from groups on either side of the issue – Emily’s List for Protasiewicz and Wisconsin Right to Life for Kelly. Both were adamant that these endorsements did not represent a commitment to ruling a certain way on a potential abortion case.
Protasiewicz said she could say with “100% certainty” that Kelly would uphold the 1849 abortion law currently on the books. Kelly emphasized that he is running what he calls a non-partisan, non-political race.
“When we get to the court, politics are done. Politics, in fact, are poison to the operation of the court,” he said.
Kelly was also asked about his involvement in the 2020 election, in which he was retained as a lawyer by the state GOP while they were challenging the 2020 election results in Wisconsin. He said it amounted to a single phone call, but acknowledged that his previous legal work could lead to recusals on the court on a case-by-case basis.
Both candidates are anticipating an influx of outside money into the race, which will go to Wisconsin voters on April 4, 2023.
