MADISON, Wis. (Legal Newsline) - Liberal Janet Protasiewicz will be Wisconsin's newest Supreme Court justice after prevailing in the most expensive judicial election in America's history.
But her conservative opponent, former justice Dan Kelly, had even harsher words for her in defeat April 4 than he did during their only debate, when he called her soft on crime and "bought-and-paid-for" by the state's Democrat Party.
His concession speech called her "not a worthy opponent to which I can concede" and accused her of running a "despicable campaign."
"Now I say this not because we did not prevail. I do not say this because of the rancid slanders that were launched against me - although that was bad enough - but that is not my concern.
"My concern is the damage done to the institution of the courts. My opponent is a serial liar. She's disregarded judicial ethics. She's demeaned the judiciary with her behavior. This is the future we have to look forward to in Wisconsin."
The race drew nationwide attention - largely from Democrat donors - because it tilted the court to a 4-3 liberal majority (Wisconsin justices don't officially belong to political parties).
A liberal majority could preserve abortion rights in the near future, while also helping block any Republican challenges in the swing state following the 2024 Presidential election.
Protasiewicz's campaign featured legal threats to television stations running critical ads and more than $13 million in funding directly to her campaign, plus outside spending. Kelly refused money from the state Republican Party and raised $2.3 million, according to filings in late March.
The tone of Kelly's concession speech was unsurprising, given the contentious hour-long debate weeks earlier. Much of it focused on Protasiewicz's history as a Milwaukee County judge who handled homicide and sexual assault cases.
One of his attacks on Protasiewicz came on remarks made during the sentencing of a man who raped his 14-year-old cousin while she slept, to which Protasiewicz responded she would like to see the full transcript because it didn't sound like something she would do. Twitter users posted an excerpt of the transcript of the sentencing hearing, during which she said, "Are you a danger to the public? I don't think so. I mean, I don't think you did anything other than engage in a crime of opportunity and hopefully you've learned your lesson."
She gave the man a 14-month prison sentence, which Kelly called "paltry" considering the victim's testimony of how the crime impacted her life.