Wisconsin Supreme Court early voting; record-breaking race heats up

MILWAUKEE - Early voting kicked off on Tuesday, March 18 in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.

Early voting in crucial election

What we know:

Voters are deciding whether the court stays liberally-controlled or flips conservative.

The state Supreme Court decides some of the most pressing issues in the state, from abortion to collective bargaining rights to pandemic restrictions.

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Every municipality can decide if and when to offer early voting hours. So, you'll have to check with your local clerk's office for the hours and days.

Hitting the campaign trail

What they're saying:

With a lot on the line, both candidates hit the now-record-setting campaign trail on Tuesday.

Conservatives back Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel. On Tuesday, he spoke at the Rotary Club of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Press Club and WisPolitics lunch.

"My opponent hasn't told the truth about my record," he said. "If she were, I wonder why over 3/4 of the elected sheriffs in Wisconsin are publicly endorsing my campaign."

Dane County Judge Susan Crawford and Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel

The same day, liberal-backed Dane County Judge Susan Crawford spoke to University of Wisconsin-Whitewater students.

"They focus on two cases that I decided out of thousands, literally, thousands, that they think they can really make sensational," Crawford said. "And those are cases where I sent those people to prison for years."

Record-breaking race

By the numbers:

The race already broke the national record for a state Supreme Court race. The Brennan Center tracks $63 million dollars spent, with $27 million in support of Crawford and $36 million in support of Schimel.

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The last national record? Wisconsin set that, too – in 2023, with $56 million. Before that, it was an Illinois Supreme Court race in 2004, with $15 million in spending.

What they're saying:

"There’s still a couple weeks to go. So far, more money is coming in from the right, than it is from the left, but again, we don’t have a complete picture yet," said Douglas Keith, a senior counsel in the Brennan Center's Judiciary Program. "We’re still waiting for  filings from the candidates, who haven’t had to report their campaign finance data for a pretty long time now.

"The politics around state courts have really changed in recent years, especially in the wake of U.S. Supreme Court decisions about abortion and redistricting that have sent some of these high-profile issues back to the states and really shown a light that state high courts really are going to be the ones making the decision in the highest profile legal fights today."