By Scott Bauer, AP

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Democratic-backed candidate for Wisconsin Supreme Court raised 10 times as much in 2025 as her Republican-endorsed opponent, putting in stark relief the challenge conservatives face in winning the 2026 race in the battleground state.

The reports filed in mid-January offer the first glimpse at one key measurement of how the race to be decided on April 7 is stacking up. Liberals, who captured the majority in 2023, are optimistic they can win their fourth Supreme Court race in a row dating back to 2020 and solidify their hold on the court for years.

The winner is elected to a 10-year term on the state’s highest court, with several hot-button issues pending including challenges to congressional district maps and the future of a state law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. The next justice will be on the court in the lead-up to the November midterm election where Wisconsin voters will elect a new governor and decide who controls the state Legislature.

Liberals have struck down a state abortion ban law and ordered new legislative maps since taking control of the court, fueling Democrats’ hopes of capturing a majority this November.

The Democratic-backed candidate is state Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor, who spent 10 years as a Democratic state lawmaker. She faces the Republicans choice, fellow state Appeals Court Judge Maria Lazar, a former prosecutor in the state attorney general’s office.

Taylor on Jan. 14 said she raised about $2 million in the last half of 2025, for a total of $2.6 million for the year. Lazar said she raised $200,000 since she got into the race in October. Taylor launched her candidacy in May.

Lazar’s campaign downplayed the disparity.

“We knew starting in October put us behind the fundraising clock, but we aren’t running a traditional, consultant-driven campaign,” Lazar campaign spokesperson Nathan Conrad said in a statement. “While our opponent relies on a $2 million head start from the same old political machines, Judge Lazar is building a new style of campaign.”

Conrad said Lazar is focused on independent voters who feel disenfranchised “and those who simply want a judge who follows the law, not a political agenda.”

Taylor’s fundraising shows that no one is taking the race for granted given the record-breaking spending on the previous state Supreme Court race, her campaign manager Ashley Franz said.

The 2025 race, won by liberal Susan Crawford, shattered national fundraising records for a judicial election, with billionaire Elon Musk spending millions on the conservative candidate. Crawford’s win maintained the liberals’ 4-3 majority on the court. If Taylor wins, that will increase to 5-2 and give liberals the majority until at least 2030, barring any resignations that trigger a special election.

Taylor and Lazar are running for an open seat caused by the retirement of a conservative justice.

Taylor’s fundraising at this point is similar to Crawford’s. In January 2025, Crawford reported raising $2.4 million, but that included $1 million from the Wisconsin Democratic Party. Taylor’s campaign said she will not report receiving any funding from the state Democratic Party.