What does the Wisconsin Supreme Court Race mean for abortion rights in Wisconsin?

As you may know, Janet Protasiewicz beat Dan Kelly in the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court Election, but some people are probably wondering, “What does the Wisconsin Supreme Court even do?” or “What does this mean for abortion rights in Wisconsin?”. The Wisconsin Supreme Court hears cases that have been appealed from lower courts, and the election is crucial to the question of abortion in Wisconsin. 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is made up of seven justices, and although the judiciary is supposed to be nonpartisan, every justice has a partisan leaning. The current seven justices are Chief Justice Annette Ziegler (conservative), Justice Anne Walsh Bradley (liberal), Justice Patience Roggensack (conservative) , Justice Rebecca Bradley (conservative), Justice Rebecca Dallet (liberal), Justice Brian Hagedorn (conservative), and Justice Jill Karofsky (liberal). The current ratio of conservative to liberal is 4:3 respectively. 

Justice Roggensack’s term ends this year (2023), and so the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election determined the political leaning of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. If Conservative Dan Kelly had won, the political leaning of the Wisconsin Supreme Court would remain 4 conservatives:3 liberals. Because Protasiewicz won, she will tip the scales to 4 liberals :3 conservatives. 

After the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe v Wade (1973) in Dobbs v Jackson (2022), the question of criminalizing abortion was left up to the states. In Wisconsin, before the overturn, there was already a trigger law in place. A trigger law means that as soon as the overturn occurs, prewritten laws criminalizing abortion will immediately become law. Janet Protasiewicz’s win means that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will likely overturn this abortion ban put in place by the trigger laws. This means that the future of abortion in Wisconsin is likely legalization. 

It is also notable that on February 14, 2023, a new bill which would restore legal abortion in Wisconsin was introduced into the Wisconsin Senate by multiple Democratic Senators. This bill would simply restore the laws to what they were pre-overturn of Roe v Wade. This bill is unlikely to pass because of the Republican majority in the Wisconsin Senate. 

Works Cited

Hess, Corrinne. “What You Should Know about the Wisconsin Supreme Court as a Pivotal Election in 2023 Approaches.” Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2023, https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2023/02/03/what-to-know-about-wisconsin-supreme-court-justices-partisan-makeup/69858790007/. 

“Https://Docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2023/Related/Proposals/sb61.” Wisconsin Legislature: SB61: Bill Text, https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2023/related/proposals/sb61. 

System, Wisconsin Court. “Supreme Court.” Wisconsin Court System – Supreme Court, https://www.wicourts.gov/courts/supreme/index.htm.