Help Maintain a Democratic Majority in Wisconsin's Supreme Court!

Dear Friend:

I know that you are aware of the impressively impactful work of the Wisconsin Democratic Party under Chairman Ben Wikler. So, now is more and more of the country as Ben is a top contender to be the next head of the DNC and as someone who has effectively led the party in a battleground state, my personal choice.

Having supported Ben and the party for the past five years, I am again asking you to join me as we raise the needed funds to win a critical Wisconsin Supreme Court race in April.

Wisconsin's upcoming supreme court election has far-reaching implications:

(1) Balance of the Court. In 2023, the election of Democratic Justice Janet Protasiewicz tipped the balance in Wisconsin's Supreme Court 4-3 in favor of Democrats. This spring, long-serving progressive Justice Ann Walsh Bradley is retiring, creating an open seat. If Democrats fail to replace Justice Bradley's seat with another Democrat, we lose our majority in Supreme Court.

(2) The Candidates. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has endorsed Judge Susan Crawford,

a former prosecutor who has represented Planned Parenthood in private practice and oversaw enforcement of environmental laws in state government. The Republican candidate is far-right extremist Brad Schimel, who served as Attorney General under Scott Walker and led ferocious attacks on reproductive freedom, the Affordable Care Act, fair maps, and voting rights. One of these two individuals will hold the court’s controlling vote.

(3) What's at Stake in Wisconsin. Since winning a Democratic majority in 2023, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has restored voting rights, ended the GOP’s partisan gerrymander of state legislative maps, and is considering a challenge to Wisconsin’s pre-Civil War abortion ban. With these maps and voting rules, Senator Tammy Baldwin won re-election by 0.9% and Democrats flipped fourteen state legislative seats, putting the party on track for dual-chamber majorities (and a possible Democratic trifecta that could reshape state law) in 2026. If we lose the majority, all of this progress will be reversed.

(4) Long-Term Impacts Beyond Wisconsin. If Democrats are able to maintain a majority in the Supreme Court, there is a path to redistricting federal congressional maps, which would allow Wisconsin to send another two (or maybe three!) Representatives to Washington. (As a cautionary tale, if Democrats had won control of North Carolina's supreme court, Democrats could have won control of the U.S. House this cycle.) Additionally, a Democratic Supreme Court in Wisconsin could further rollback voter suppression laws, paving the way for a Democrat to beat Senator Ron Johnson in 2028, allowing for a rare Senate pickup opportunity.

(5) Timing Matters! Ben Wikler, the phenomenal Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (WisDems), is tasked with raising $15M to win the upcoming Supreme Court election. (The 2023 state-wide Wisconsin Supreme Court election was the most expensive state-wide Supreme Court election in the history of our country.) Ben is also running for Chair of the DNC. The best way we can support Ben in his race for DNC Chair is to support the Wisconsin Supreme Court election—not only does the Supreme Court race matter in terms of guaranteeing Wisconsin remains a Democracy, but donations to the Supreme Court Race will free up Ben's time to allow him to win the votes needed to become DNC Chair!

As both an incentive and a ‘thank you,’ Ben is able to join us Friday January 17th over Zoom to discuss Wisconsin's Supreme Court election, valuable lessons learned from the last election cycle, and the DNC race.

~Zoom details are as follows~

Date: Friday, January 17

Time: 1:30 - 2:00 pm

Link: To be provided separately over email in advance of 1/17 to everyone who donates via this link

If you prefer to pay by check, checks payable to "Democratic Party of Wisconsin" can be mailed to: WRH Strategies, 3528 N. Leavitt Street, Chicago, IL, 60618.

Questions? Contact Wendy Heltzer at 312-339-9513 or wendy@wrhstrategies.com.