Supreme Court Candidates Both Report ‘Historic’ Campaign Fundraising Totals
Dane County Judge Susan Crawford reports outraising former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel by approximately $600,000.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday, June 9, 2021, at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis. Angela Major/WPR
About $5 million has already been raised by two judges vying to be the next justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, with Dane County Judge Susan Crawford, the candidate backed by Democrats, claiming she’s outraised former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel by $600,000.
While detailed reports aren’t due until Jan. 15, both candidates released fundraising totals Wednesday covering a period ending Dec. 31.
Schimel’s campaign said it raised $1.5 million between July 1 and Dec. 31, and a grand total of $2.2 million since he got into the race in November 2023.
Schimel’s campaign said 98 percent of the money came from donors in 70 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties. In a statement, Schimel criticized liberal justices on the court by suggesting bias in their recent rulings since taking control of the court in August 2023.
“People are tired of judges putting their personal agendas above the law and that’s reflected in the enthusiasm for our campaign,” Schimel said. “I am humbled by the outpouring of support and this historic haul is a testament to the momentum we’re experiencing in every corner of the state.”
Schimel’s campaign said it ended the period with $1.8 million in the bank.
Crawford’s campaign said she raised $2.8 million since entering the race in June 2024, seven months after Schimel. During the July to December reporting period, Crawford’s campaign said it raised more than $2.4 million from donors in 71 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties and ended the period with $2.1 million in the bank.
In a statement, Crawford described herself as a “common sense” candidate and attacked Schimel directly, calling him a “right wing extremist.”
“As a prosecutor, attorney, and judge, I’ve always been guided by the same basic values of right and wrong that I learned growing up in Chippewa Falls,” Crawford said. “I’m honored to be on the ballot and grateful to have the historic outpouring of support from so many Wisconsinites in nearly every county.”
Both Schimel and Crawford described their fundraising hauls as “historic,” and at this stage of the campaign, they are running ahead of what candidates had raised in the record-setting 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election.
During the same period in that race, no candidate came close to the hauls reported by Schimel and Crawford. In January 2023, former conservative Justice Dan Kelly reported bringing in a total of $313,970. Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Dorow, who ran as a conservative against Kelly, reported $306,919.
On the liberal side, now-Justice Janet Protasiewicz, who was then a Milwaukee County judge, reported a total of $925,089 in contributions. Her liberal primary opponent, Dane County Judge Everett Mitchell, had raised $140,106.
This time, neither Schimel or Crawford will face primary opponents from within their parties before the general election April 1. While the race is officially nonpartisan, Wisconsin’s Republican and Democratic parties have already been busy lobbing attacks on behalf of their preferred candidates.
During Wisconsin’s last Supreme Court race, fundraising records were shattered. A running tally by WisPolitics found total spending of just more than $56 million.
The stakes of this April’s election are arguably just as high as the last one, when the defeat of former conservative Justice Dan Kelly by Protasiewicz gave liberals control of the court for the first time in 15 years.
A Schimel victory would put the court back in conservative hands once again. A Crawford victory could give liberals at least three more years of majority rule because the next two elections, in 2026 and 2027, are for seats already held by conservatives, putting them on defense.
Crawford, Schimel both report ‘historic’ donations in state Supreme Court race was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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