The 2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court election was held on April 7, 2026, to elect a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for a ten-year term. Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge Chris Taylor defeated fellow Court of Appeals judge Maria Lazar in a landslide, expanding the court's liberal majority from 4–3 to 5–2. Taylor was sworn in at the start of the next judicial term, on August 1, 2026.

Incumbent justice Rebecca Bradley chose not to seek reelection after serving on the court since October 2015. Bradley was associated with the conservative minority on the court, meaning that the 2026 election could not change the ideological majority of the court. Since control of the court was not at risk, this race had a much lower profile than recent Wisconsin Supreme Court elections. The 2023 and 2025 elections were the most expensive judicial races in world history, with total spending in those races exceeding $45 million and $100 million, respectively; the 2026 election, on the other hand, saw less than $9 million spent by the campaigns and outside interests. Voter turnout was also down significantly from the high bar set in 2023 and 2025.

Taylor won the election by about 20 percentage points, far exceeding pre-election polling and the spread seen in recent Supreme Court elections. This election marked the largest margin of victory in a contested Wisconsin Supreme Court race since 2000. Because of the schedule of upcoming judicial elections, Taylor's victory likely secures a liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court until at least August 2030.

Background The Wisconsin Supreme Court tipped from a 4–3 conservative majority to a 4–3 liberal majority due to the 2023 election, which at that time was the most expensive judicial election in history. The liberals retained their 4–3 majority in the 2025 election, when that race became the most expensive judicial election in history. The incumbent in 2026, Rebecca Bradley, is a member of the conservative minority, and therefore the outcome of the election would not change the court's ideological majority in any case.

Bradley initially announced in April 2025 that she would run for reelection. Political observers, however, noticed that she was not engaged in any fund-raising activity for a reelection campaign, and on August 29, 2025, she announced she was withdrawing from the race.

Historically, it has been rare for incumbents to lose reelection to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Due to this, open-seat races have generally been regarded as valuable opportunities to potentially alter the court's ideological composition.Multiple sources: Only 23 of the more than 136 previous elections held for the court have been for open seats. It has also been rare for contested Wisconsin Supreme Court races to be held without the need for a primary.

Candidates Declared Maria Lazar, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2022–present) Chris Taylor, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2023–present) and former state representative (2011–2019)

Declined Rebecca Bradley, incumbent Supreme Court justice (2015–present) Lyndsey Boon Brunette, Clark County circuit judge and former Clark County district attorney (2012–2016) (endorsed Taylor) Pedro Colón, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2023–present) and former state representative (1999–2011) (endorsed Taylor) Sara Geenen, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2023–present) (endorsed Taylor) Gregory Gill, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2021–present) Rachel Graham, Wisconsin Court of Appeals judge (2019–present) (endorsed Taylor)

Campaign Without the court's ideological majority hanging in the balance, the election attracted far less attention and fundraising than the 2025 election, which was the most expensive judicial election in American history. As the race neared its end in March, spending was less than $9 million total, far below the $100 million in the prior election. The decline in fundraising and advertising greatly lowered the profile of the race, with only a small proportion of the electorate paying close attention. In line with previous elections, however, voting rights remained at the forefront of the campaign with Taylor and Lazar taking opposite positions on recent redistricting litigation, as well as other issues such as abortion and labor rights. Taylor held a considerable fundraising lead in the leadup to the election, as liberals sought to expand their majority on the Court.

This fundraising advantage, as well as her lead in pre-election polling, had most, including many Republicans, predicting Taylor as favored to win the election. Some characterized the Republicans as both organizationally and motivationally demoralized after having lost the previous three Supreme Court elections by wide margins. The low turnout in early voting, muted voter enthusiasm, and large number of undecided voters in polling still left the outcome uncertain, however, with the same predictors conceding a Lazar upset as a possibility.

Endorsements

Debate 2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court election debate Date Host Moderators Link Candidates Participant   Absent   Non-invitee   Invitee Withdrawn Lazar Taylor 1 April 2, 2026 WISN-TV Matt Smith,Gerron Jordan YouTube

Fundraising Campaign finance reports as of March 23, 2026CandidateRaisedSpentCash on handMaria Lazar $862,176 $645,497 $217,859Chris Taylor $6,126,855 $5,290,379 $332,389Source: WI Ethics Commission

Polling Pollster Datesadministered Samplesize Marginof error ChrisTaylor MariaLazar Other UndecidedMarquette University Law SchoolMarch 11–18, 2026597 (LV)± 5.3%30%22%1% 47%850 (RV)± 4.4%23%17%7% 53%Marquette University Law SchoolFebruary 11–19, 2026818 (RV)± 4.3%17%12%5% 66%

Results Taylor won the election by a wide margin, securing liberal control of the court until at least 2030. Despite most predicting that she would win, her margin of victory was substantially larger than anticipated, standing at 20 percentage points, which was double the margin of the preceding three liberal Supreme Court victories. Taylor became the first democratic-aligned candidate since 2015 to win a majority of the state's counties, although analysis of each county's individual margins compared to her statewide margin produces similar voting patterns to that of the 2024 presidential election, suggesting a persistence of political polarization among the electorate. Taylor's performance in the WOW counties, once the state's foremost Republican strongholds, were particularly notable, winning Ozaukee County outright and holding Lazar to much narrower margins than usual in Waukesha and Washington counties.

Turnout in the race was approximately one third of registered voters, above average for state supreme court elections, though still a drop of about 860,000 votes from the 2025 election.

By congressional district Taylor won seven of eight congressional districts, including five held by Republicans.

District Lazar Taylor Representative 42.4% 57.6%Bryan Steil 20.4% 79.6%Mark Pocan 39.3% 60.7%Derrick Van Orden 18.9% 81.1%Gwen Moore 54.3% 45.7%Scott L. Fitzgerald 47.9% 52.1%Glenn Grothman 48.7% 51.3%Tom Tiffany 46.5% 53.5%Tony Wied

See also 2026 Wisconsin elections 2026 United States judicial elections

Notes

References

External links Official campaign websites Maria Lazar for Supreme Court Chris Taylor for Supreme Court