![]() ![]() ![]() In 2012, he defended Wisconsin's Republican-drawn legislative maps in federal court. Most of Kelly's career was spent as an attorney. He was originally appointed to the court by former Republican Gov. Kelly downplayed his political views, but he brought a long Republican resume to the race. Her campaign also relied more than any in history on the Democratic Party of Wisconsin's financial support, so much so that Protasiewicz vowed to recuse herself from cases involving the state party once she takes office. When it came to redistricting, she called the state's Republican-drawn legislative maps "rigged." On the issue of abortion, she said she believed women have a right to choose. ![]() While she never promised to rule one way or another on cases that come before the Supreme Court, Protasiewicz was especially open about her politics during the campaign. Protasiewicz was born and raised on Milwaukee's south side, spending 25 years as a prosecutor in the Milwaukee County District Attorney's office and most of the last decade as a judge. The court could also potentially redraw Wisconsin's congressional map, where Republicans currently hold six out of eight U.S House seats in an otherwise 50-50 state. Should the court redraw the maps and give Democrats a better chance of winning races for the legislature, they hope they could finally push the state's political trajectory to the left. If election lawsuits are filed in state court, Protasiewicz will be one of the seven justices who have the final say. Justices are all but certain to hear a challenge to Wisconsin's pre-Civil War abortion ban, and with a liberal majority, they're likely to consider a lawsuit that could overturn Wisconsin's Republican-drawn legislative maps.īarring the unexpected, the victory also assures that liberals will hold a majority on the court ahead of next year's presidential election, when Wisconsin - the perennial swing state - is expected to again be pivotal in the race for the White House. The win by Protasiewicz comes at a pivotal time for the court, and for the Democratic voters who carried her to office. Spending in the campaign shattered the previous national record for a state supreme court election. Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz won the hotly contested race for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, according to a race call by The Associated Press, defeating former state Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly. – Democrats have scored a major off-year election victory in Wisconsin, winning the state's open supreme court seat and flipping control of the court to liberals for the first time in 15 years. ![]()
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