Here’s the Top Donors in High Court Race

Lisa Neubauer and Brian Hagedorn.

Two appeals court judges vying for an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in April raised a combined $641,000 in the last half of 2018, and many of their largest contributors were longtime partisan donors.

Campaign finance reports filed by the candidates on Tuesday show numerous longtime Democratic donors and union political action committees (PACs) backed Appeals Judge Lisa Neubauer, of Racine. Several longtime Republican donors were among the top contributors to Appeals Judge Brian Hagedorn, of Oconomowoc.

Neubauer, of Racine, raised about $330,400 in the last six months of 2018 and had about $573,000 in her campaign account on Dec. 31. A preliminary review of her latest campaign finance report showed her largest contributors were:

Lynde Uihlein, a Milwaukee philanthropist who runs the Brico Fund, $20,000

Marianne and Sheldon Lubar, of River Hills, $20,000. Sheldon Lubar founded Lubar & Co.

John C. Miller, of Kohler, a retired attorney, $20,000

Robert Haselow, of Edina, Minn., founder of Minneapolis Radiation Oncology, $20,000

Wisconsin Laborers District Council PAC, DeForest, $18,000

Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) PAC, Madison, $18,000

American Federation of Teachers Local 212, Milwaukee, $18,000

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC, Washington, D.C., $10,000

Madeleine Lubar, of Milwaukee, a homemaker and volunteer, $10,000. Lubar’s husband, David, is president of Lubar & Co.

Appeals Judge Brian Hagedorn, of Oconomowoc, raised $310,630 in the last half of 2018 and had about $281,100 in his campaign account on Dec. 31. A preliminary review of his latest campaign finance report showed his largest contributors were:

Michael White, of River Hills, chairman of Rite Hite Corp., $20,000

Richard Uihlein, of Lake Forest, Ill., owner of Uline Corp., $20,000

Fred Young, of Racine, retired owner of Young Radiator, $10,000

Holly K. Jensen, of Madison, $10,000. Jensen and her husband, Jay, own Clasen Quality Coatings.

John Silseth, of Brookfield, owner of Antietam LLC, $10,000

Kathryn Burke, of Milwaukee, $10,000. Burke and her husband, John, own Burke Properties.

Ron Buholzer, of Monroe, co-owner of Klondike Cheese Factory, $10,000

Steve Buholzer, of Monroe, co-owner of Klondike Cheese Factory, $10,000

Neubauer and Hagedorn, who are both judges on the District II Court of Appeals based in Waukesha, are seeking to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Shirley Abrahamson on the April 2 ballot.

Abrahamson is one of the seven-member court’s liberal members. Conservatives currently have a 4-3 majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.