Wisconsin’s spring 2023 election centers on a race for an open seat on the state Supreme Court that will determine its balance of power. Continuing its reporting in advance of the February primary, Here & Now 2023 has covered the candidates and issues central to this election along with other contests, including statewide ballot questions and a special election for a state senate seat. To learn more, explore “Here & Now” reporting about the 2023 spring election.
 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court race between candidates Daniel Kelly and Janet Protasiewicz is intense and acrimonious, attracting significant levels of national attention from their supporters and political observers, and has become the most expensive election for a state high court seat in the history of the United States.

“Here & Now” interviewed both candidates in January in advance of the primary.

• Daniel Kelly on the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race
• Janet Protasiewicz on the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race

“Here & Now” interviewed Kelly for a second time in late March. Another interview with Protasiewicz was scheduled as well, but it was subsequently canceled due to illness.

• Daniel Kelly on the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election

“Here & Now” conducted an interview with sitting state high court Justice Jill Karofsky, who appeared on behalf of Protasiewicz to discuss the election, interviewed a former justice about the conspicuous presence of partisan politics in the race, and spoke with a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse about negative campaign ads released by the candidates and their supporters.

• Jill Karofsky on the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election
• Janine Geske on Daniel Kelly versus Janet Protasiewicz
• Anthony Chergosky on Wisconsin Supreme Court race attack ads

These interviews and other public statements by Kelly and Protasiewicz about their candidacies shed light on their judicial philosophies and political perspectives in a race that was marked with only a single debate.

• What Daniel Kelly and Janet Protasiewicz say about the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election
• Janet Protasiewicz, Daniel Kelly on Wisconsin redistricting
• Daniel Kelly, Janet Protasiewicz on health orders, 2020 vote
• Highlights from the Daniel Kelly, Janet Protasiewicz debate

The statewide ballot also includes three questions, two of which are related to a proposed constitutional amendment on how courts can set bail, along with another that’s an advisory referendum with no direct policy impact. The two amendment questions have particular language that would have specific effects on people who are charged with crimes.

• Fast Facts: The questions on Wisconsin’s spring 2023 ballot
• Cecelia Klingele on Wisconsin’s cash bail amendment proposal

Another high-profile race in Wisconsin is a special election for the Senate District 8 seat, which was vacated following a retirement. This district in the northern suburbs of Milwaukee was long held by a Republican, but voting trends in the area are shifting gradually toward Democratic candidates. The outcome of this race between state Rep. Dan Knodl, a Republican from Germantown, and Jodi Habush Sinykin, a Democrat from Whitefish Bay, will determine whether or not Republicans hold a supermajority in the state senate and are therefore able to potentially pursue impeachment proceedings against public officials.

• How a shifting electorate is shaping the race for Wisconsin’s 8th Senate District
• Dan Knodl on the Wisconsin Senate and impeachment
• Jodi Habush Sinykin on the Wisconsin Senate and impeachment
• The stakes in the 2023 race for Wisconsin Senate District 8

There are also many municipal-level elections being held around the state in the spring 2023 election. One of the most prominent races is for Green Bay mayor, in which the contest for a nonpartisan office has taken on a distinct partisan edge.

• City issues meet national politics in the 2023 race for mayor of Green Bay

The Wisconsin Supreme Court and Senate District 8 races have attracted considerable attention from political observers around the state and nation. PBS Wisconsin senior political reporter Zac Schultz has discussed the dynamics of these campaigns in interviews with “Here & Now” and the WNET “States of Democracy” podcast, while PBS NewsHour examined its political stakes in a report on the eve of the election.

• Zac Schultz on the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election
• State of Democracy: Wisconsin
• How Wisconsin’s sharp political divides shaped its 2023 state Supreme Court election

The 2023 election primary is on April 4, with polls in Wisconsin opening at 7 a.m. and closing at 8 p.m. More information about candidates and races, the basics of voting, and election results as they are updated can be found at Wisconsin Vote.