The Capitol Report, produced by WisPolitics.com — a nonpartisan, Madison-based news service that specializes in coverage of government and politics — provides a weekly analysis of issues being debated in Wisconsin state government. It is underwritten by the WNA and produced exclusively for its members. WisPolitics.com President Jeff Mayers is a former editor and reporter for the Associated Press and a former political writer for the Wisconsin State Journal.
By WisPolitics.com
The 2026 elections kick off in the spring with yet another high-spending state Supreme Court race on the horizon.
But several reasons suggest this won’t be a race like the two previous ones that shattered spending records:
• This race is not for philosophical control of the high court.
• The first open governor’s race since 2010 is well underway, dominating media and political discussions.
• And conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley won’t be on the ballot.
Enter Appeals Court Judge Maria Lazar, the first conservative to step into the race after Bradley decided against seeking another 10-year term.
Lazar said in a rollout video it was time to “draw a line in the sand and stop the destruction of our courts, especially our state Supreme Court.”
She also jabbed at 4th District Court of Appeals Judge Chris Taylor, a former Dem lawmaker who announced her bid for the open Supreme Court seat in the spring. Lazar didn’t mention Taylor by name as she said her opponent, a former lawmaker, was appointed to the bench with no experience and was a “politician first.”
By contrast, the former assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice and Waukesha County judge said voters elected her to both of her seats on the bench.
“I am an independent, impartial judge who strives to follow the law and Constitution in every decision I make from the bench,” Lazar said in the 4-minute video. “It is time to restore that level of judicial dedication to the court.”
Bradley announced Aug. 29 she wouldn’t seek another 10-year term on the court, a blow to conservatives hoping to keep the liberal majority at the current 4-3 split. The election is in April.
WisPolitics tracked $115 million in spending in the spring 2025 Supreme Court race as liberals cemented their majority until at least 2028. And it tallied $56 million in spending in 2023 as liberals flipped the majority on the court for the first time since 2008.
Lazar vowed not to discuss on the campaign trail how she’d vote on cases, saying judicial ethics have been “thrown out the window” in recent races. She pledged to only discuss how she has ruled on cases and how she makes her decisions, even though Lazar acknowledged voters often want to know how judicial candidates would rule.
The back-to-the-future campaign envisioned by Lazar has some pundits scratching their heads. Hard to go back to the staid, endorsement-laden campaigns of the past, they say.
Taylor campaign manager Ashley Franz knocked Lazar in a statement, accusing the appeals court judge of spending her career rolling back people’s rights while attacking reproductive care and voting rights. She said if elected, Lazar would be the most extreme member of the Supreme Court.
“Rebecca Bradley stepped aside because she knew Wisconsinites would reject her extreme record — the same record Maria Lazar has mirrored her entire career,” Franz said.
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