Retiring Justice Ann Walsh Bradley Elected To Lead Supreme Court

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Ann Walsh Bradley celebrates with supporters of Justice Elect Susan Crawford during Crawford’s election night event Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at Park Hotel in Madison, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

For the first time since 2015, a liberal has been elected chief justice of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court.

Outgoing Justice Ann Walsh Bradley will take the helm for the next two months before retiring and will be succeeded by fellow liberal Justice Jill Karofsky for the remainder of the two-year term.

A statement from the court says Walsh Bradley will begin her new role May 1. The announcement comes days after Wisconsinites elected liberal Dane County Judge Susan Crawford to replace Bradley following a contentious race against former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel that garnered national attention and more than $100 million in spending.

The Supreme Court’s chief justice serves as the administrative head of the Wisconsin Court System.

“It is a tremendous honor to be elected by my colleagues as the leader of this great court,” Bradley said. “It has been my life’s goal to honor the rule of law, enhance access to justice, and serve the 5.9 million people who call Wisconsin home. Serving as Chief Justice enables me to further those goals.”

Bradley is the most senior member of the state Supreme Court. She was first elected to a 10-year term in 1995 and was reelected in 2005 and 2015.One year ago, Bradley announced she would not run for a fourth term. That means she’ll serve as chief justice from May 1 through June 30 before she leaves the bench at the end of July.

Bradley will succeed current conservative Chief Justice Annette Ziegler, who was first elected to a two-year term as top justice by the Supreme Court’s former conservative majority in 2021. She was reelected in May 2023, months before liberals regained control of the court for the first time in 15 years.

“I wish my colleagues all the best,” Ziegler said about the transition. “It has been my honor to serve as chief justice for the last four years.”

In anticipation of Bradley’s impending retirement, the statement from the court said liberal Justice Jill Karofsky will take over as chief justice on July 1.

“I deeply appreciate the confidence my colleagues have placed in me, and I will continue to work respectfully with every member of this Court to ensure the administration of Court business is conducted in a fair and efficient manner,” Karofsky said. “The people of Wisconsin have great faith in this Court, and I intend to be a Chief that increases the people’s confidence even further.”

Karofsky was elected to the Supreme Court in April 2020. Before taking her seat, she served as a Dane County Court Judge and executive director of the Office of Crime Victim Services at the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

For 126 years, chief justices of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court were picked based on seniority. That changed in 2015, when voters approved a constitutional amendment written by Republican lawmakers. At the time, that made it possible for the court’s conservative majority to replace the state’s longest serving Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, who was seen as part of the court’s liberal minority.

Outgoing liberal Justice Ann Walsh Bradley elected to lead Wisconsin Supreme Court was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.