The Wisconsin Supreme Court election was held on Tuesday, April 4th, 2023, and liberal Janet Protasiewicz defeated former Justice, Dan Kelly. According to the Associated Press, Protasiewicz had a lead of 160,000 votes and held 55.4% of the votes in comparison to 44.6%. Now, for the first time in fifteen years, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will be led by a liberal judge, opening doors to new interpretations and policy changes. 

Janet Protasiewicz was a former prosecutor who served over 25 years as assistant district attorney for Wisconsin and a board member of several organizations affiliated with Marquette University, where she graduated from Law School in 1988.

So what does this mean for Wisconsin? Protasiewicz has pledged to remove partisan politics from the courtroom, stating, “It’s time for our state Supreme Court to stop acting like a political body and uphold the constitution and the law”.

 With the recent US Supreme Court ruling over abortions and the Wisconsin State ban, Protasiewitz based much of her campaign ads on her support for abortion rights and other women’s rights issues such as domestic violence and sexual assault. She also plans to discuss her state’s congressional and legislative maps in regard to gerrymandering.

Protasiewitz will begin her 10-year term on August 1, 2023, replacing current Supreme Court Justice Patience D. Roggensack.