MILWAUKEE — With less than three weeks to go until the April 1 spring election, the two candidates for the Wisconsin Supreme Court shared a stage Wednesday night for their first and only debate.
The match-up was a big opportunity for Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford and Waukesha County Circuit Judge Brad Schimel to make names for themselves, especially after a Marquette Law School Poll last week showed many voters haven’t heard enough about either of them.
Squaring off on a stage at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Crawford and Schimel aimed at one another during their first and last meetup hosted by WISN 12 News.
Abortion rights were almost immediately on the table with the state’s 1849 ban currently before the state Supreme Court.
“He has openly said, when he has been in front of audiences of his political allies that there is nothing wrong with that law and it should be enforced,” Crawford said. “That is not the kind of open-mindedness that we expect from judges.”
“It was passed by two houses of the legislature and signed by a governor,” Schimel responded. “That means it’s a valid law, but what I said next was that there’s a real question as to whether that law reflects the will of the people of Wisconsin now and today.”
Both candidates are vying for a 10-year term to replace retiring Justice Ann Walsh Bradley in what’s technically a nonpartisan race but will decide the ideological balance of the court.
That has resulted in a lot of big money poured into the race, with Crawford backed by philanthropist George Soros and Schimel having picked up support from billionaire Elon Musk.
“I don’t control that money. We’re not allowed to coordinate with outside groups,” Schimel said when asked about impartiality. “I haven’t solicited that money from them. They have made this decision on their own to support my campaign, and they’ve decided what their messaging looks like.”
“I have had generous contributions that have gone to the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has endorsed me and supported my candidacy,” Crawford answered to the same question. “But let’s talk about Elon Musk, talk about somebody that’s been dangerous.”
After Wednesday night’s debate, surrogates took to the spin room.
“You heard her even tonight, talk about how she champions clients like the League of Women Voters and Planned Parenthood. How she had an extremely partisan call where she essentially came off as selling two congressional seats because a new court with a liberal majority would redo the maps. We’ve got to have some buyer beware in this election,” Former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch told reporters.
Supporters of Schimel said the state’s future is at stake and that is why he jumped into the race.
“He didn’t have to do it. He does it out of a sense of calling and to save this state from a tyranny of four people making all the decisions for the people of Wisconsin. Those decisions belong with the people,” Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Grassl Bradley added.
Surrounded by the four justices who make up the current liberal majority on the court, Crawford made her own closing argument on the night.
“Brad Schimel is an extreme politician who has attacked the rights of Wisconsinites,” Crawford said.
She also defended her decision to weigh in on abortion rights during the debate when asked by reporters.
“What I haven’t done and won’t do is talk about how I might decide any particular case or comment on any particular law regulating abortion,” Crawford added.
The race has already broken a spending record with $59 million spent so far, according to a tally by WisPolitics.
For perspective, $56 million was spent during the 2023 campaign for the state’s high court and there are still three weeks to go until election day.
