April 8, 2019 at 3:43 p.m.
Conservative Hagedorn wins Supreme Court race
Conservative Hagedorn wins Supreme Court race
Appeals court judge Brian Hagedorn claimed the narrow victory over appeals court judge Lisa Neubauer, who was backed by many liberals and Democrats in the state. The margin was so close, however, Neubauer could request a recount.
The victor will replace the retiring liberal justice on the high court, Shirley Abrahamson. If Hagedorn's margin holds, conservatives will hold a 5-2 majority on the state Supreme Court.
Voters in northeastern and in north-central Wisconsin propelled Hagedorn to victory, according to early analyses of the returns. In north-central Wisconsin, the swing of votes from the liberal to conservative candidate over last spring's Supreme Court race was 17 points.
Statewide, Neubauer earned more votes than liberal Rebecca Dallet did in Dallet's winning contest a year ago, but Hagedorn won 160,000 more votes than the losing conservative candidate last year, Michael Screnock.
All totaled, 200,000 more voters trooped to the polls than last year.
The win was all the more remarkable because Hagedorn had lost support from groups which traditionally support conservative candidates, such as the Wisconsin Realtors Association, who said the candidate did not represent its members' values.
The group withdrew its support after reports that Hagedorn had helped found a school which lists being gay as grounds for expulsion. Hagedorn stood his ground, though, and turned the issue into one of religious liberty, apparently to his advantage.
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