Wisconsin voters have elected Chris Taylor to the state supreme court, giving liberals a 5-2 majority on the bench. Taylor defeated conservative Maria Lazar in the race to replace retiring Justice Rebecca Bradley. Taylor, a liberal judge on the state’s court of appeals and a former Democratic lawmaker, will join four other liberal justices. Lazar, also a court of appeals judge and former deputy state attorney general, had aligned with Republican policies that could limit voting access. The retirement of Bradley, a conservative who had served on the court since 2015, opened the seat for a liberal candidate. Bradley had written the opinion banning ballot dropboxes, a measure challenged amid claims of mail-in ballot fraud. Liberals later reversed her decision after gaining control of the court. Taylor’s win strengthens the liberal bloc on the high court. She is known for supporting voting rights, while Lazar had defended gerrymandered maps favoring Republicans. Voting rights advocates say the election outcome is key for Wisconsin’s role as a swing state in national elections. Victoria Bassetti, a senior adviser at a democracy-focused group, noted that Wisconsin continues to face election-related litigation. She said, “While this supreme court race may seem like a sleeper contest, from the democracy perspective, it’s anything but low-stakes … These issues never go to sleep in Wisconsin.” Though justices are officially non-partisan, the court had a 4-3 liberal majority after a 2023 election. That contest, one of the most expensive judicial elections in U.S. history, drew over $100 million in spending, including donations from high-profile figures. This year’s race, in contrast, was quieter and raised less money. Taylor still had a fundraising advantage over Lazar, helping her run an effective campaign. Despite this, polls from Marquette Law School in March showed that over half of voters remained undecided less than a month before election day. Judicial elections vary by state. Wisconsin voters directly elect their supreme court justices. In other states, judges are appointed or face retention votes. Across the U.S., judicial campaigns have grown increasingly costly in recent years. The election is also seen as an indicator of Democratic strength ahead of November’s midterms. Democrats have won several unexpected victories nationwide, boosting momentum in swing states like Wisconsin. Voter behavior in judicial elections often differs from midterm turnout, but the results remain politically significant. In the final days of campaigning, Lazar accused Taylor of being overly partisan. Speaking at a Republican county office, she said the court “is not for sale” and emphasized the importance of judges focusing on law rather than politics. Taylor, speaking at a Democratic headquarters, highlighted the court’s role in protecting state independence and elections. She said, “We have an opportunity with this election to strengthen a pro-democracy majority on our court that’s going to protect our rights and freedoms, that’s going to protect our democracy and our elections, and that is going to hold and resist the efforts of the federal government to come into our state and to take away and infringe on our independence as a state.” With this win, liberals now hold five of the seven seats on Wisconsin’s high court. The victory positions the court to influence major voting rights and election law decisions in the state, including potential cases in the upcoming presidential election.