Another defeat for Republicans in state elections during the Trump era.
Liberal candidate Rebecca Dallet has won election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, according to Decision Desk. Dallet defeated her conservative opponent for the open seat, Michael Screnock easily, and her victory will cut the conservative majority on the court from 5-2 to just 4-3.
Dallet’s win is yet another example of liberal voter enthusiasm in state and local elections held during the age of Trump. And in Wisconsin specifically, it’s a rare victory for a Democratic Party that’s been beaten again and again in recent years. (The race was technically nonpartisan, but Dallet was the Democrat-backed candidate, and Screnock the conservative-backed one.)
However, the court will remain in conservative hands for the near future. The next conservative-held seat won’t be up for election until 2020, and before that, liberals will have to defend one of their own seats next year.
Once elected, Wisconsin Supreme Court justices serve out 10-year terms. However, if a seat should become vacant in the middle of a term, the governor can appoint a replacement justice. A new election is then scheduled for that seat in the first year when there’s no other supreme court election on the ballot (that is, two seats can’t go up for election in the same year). Tuesday’s election is for an open seat held by a conservative justice who chose to retire.
But though these court elections are “nonpartisan,” in practice the state supreme court has become bitterly divided along ideological lines, with millions of dollars in outside spending pouring into these contests — and conservatives usually tending to come out on top.
