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(CNN) Wisconsin voters on Tuesday are deciding the outcome of what could be the most important election of the year for the state Supreme Court.
The race between Democratic-backed Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasevic and Republican-backed former State Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly is set to take the GOP in one of the nation’s most battleground states for 10 years. The future of abortion access, shattering the era of dominance over. This is the most expensive state judicial race ever.
The Conservative Party currently holds a 4-3 majority in the Wisconsin Superior Court. But the departure of conservative Judge Patiens Roggenzack gives liberals an opportunity to regain control for at least the next two years, thereby radically changing the political climate in a state that has been in political strife for more than a decade. changed to The race could also effectively determine how courts rule legal challenges to Wisconsin’s 1849 anti-abortion law.
Wisconsin is one of 14 states that directly elect Supreme Court justices, with the winner receiving a 10-year term. Although constituencies are nominally nonpartisan, political parties have little doubt about which candidates they endorse. According to the Brennan Center, this year’s running costs have brought him up to $28.8 million as of March 29, well above any previous state judicial contest spending record.
Republican dominance in Wisconsin began with the election of Governor Scott Walker in 2010. This victory was followed by the passage of union-busting laws, creating drawn state legislative districts to effectively secure a Republican majority. It has been the majority since 2008.
Walker lost his bid for a third term in 2018 to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. A re-election process in favor of using the legislative map drawn by the Republican Party rather than the one submitted by Evers. The decision cemented a Republican majority in the state legislature.
Revisiting these maps, which Protasiewicz criticizes, could lead to new state legislative districts unfavorable for Republicans if she wins.
Courts have also shaped Wisconsin elections in other ways. Last year, it banned the use of most ballot drop-boxes and ruled that ballots cannot be returned directly on behalf of other voters. The court played a pivotal role in the outcome of his 2020 election in Wisconsin. The judges voted 4 to 3 for him, with conservative Brian Hegedon joining his three liberals on the court and Donald his ex-President Trump looking to cast the ballot in a Democratic-leaning county. refused the attempt.
Tuesday’s election sets the stage for the 2024 presidential election, and courts are likely to be asked to reconsider election rules, including state voter identification laws, before seeking another legal challenge. may be arranged.
But the one most likely to go to court as early as this fall is the dispute over Wisconsin’s 1849 law, which bans abortion in nearly all circumstances.
Groups on both sides of the abortion campaign are pouring billions of dollars into the campaign and trying to mobilize voters ahead of Tuesday’s election.
The two candidates have declined to say how they will decide on this issue, leaving little doubt as to their inclinations.
In a debate last month, Protasiewicz said he made “no promises” about how he would govern. However, she has also expressed her personal support for abortion rights and her support from abortion rights groups. And she noted Kelly’s support for Wisconsin’s Right to Life, which opposes abortion rights.
“If my opponent is elected, I can say with 100% certainty that the abortion ban of 1849 will remain in place,” said Protasiewicz.
Kelly, who has practiced law for Right to Life, Wisconsin, countered that Protashewitz’s comments were “absolutely untrue.”
“You don’t know what I think about that abortion ban,” he said. “You don’t know. You don’t know these things.”
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