by Henry Redman, Wisconsin Examiner
February 14, 2023
Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Janet Protasiewicz continues to far out-raise her three primary opponents in a race that will determine the ideological sway of the state’s highest court.
Protasiewicz, a Milwaukee County judge, raised four times more money than her opponents in the week since Feb. 6, campaign finance reports show. In that week, she took in $195,501 — largely from out-of-state donors, just $7,500 of that money came from Wisconsin residents.
The massive haul maintains Protasiewicz’ lead in the fundraising department after she set a record with $924,349 raised in 2022, the most a Supreme Court candidate has raised in the year before an election.
The liberal-leaning judge received two maximum donations of $20,000 in the last week with contributions coming from Los Angeles residents Luis and Lee Lainer.
The massive fundraising lead helped Protasiewicz run a TV ad during the Super Bowl on Sunday night.
This week, all four candidates are required to file campaign finance reports detailing the money they received between Jan. 1 and Feb. 6. The candidates are also required to file reports detailing contributions larger than $1,000 during the two-week gap between the end of the reporting period and an election.
Waukesha County Judge Jennifer Dorow, a conservative-leaning candidate, drew $30,800 in late contributions since Feb. 6, including $10,000 from Don Zietlow, the president and CEO of Kwik Trip.
Liberal-leaning candidate Everett Mitchell, a Dane County judge, reported $11,500 in late contributions, including $7,500 from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, which is remaining neutral in the primary but has disbursed literature featuring both Mitchell and Protasiewicz.
Daniel Kelly, another conservative and former Supreme Court justice, reported just a single late contribution of $1,000.
The four-way primary is set for Feb. 21.
Wisconsin Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Wisconsin Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Ruth Conniff for questions: [email protected]. Follow Wisconsin Examiner on Facebook and Twitter.
