By Nancy Dodge
Northside Action Team

“Why should I vote in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race? I just don’t see how it affects me.” 

This comment is understandable — the operation of our state government can be complex and confusing. The supreme court is one of three branches of Wisconsin’s government and is meant to be a check and balance on the executive and legislative branches.

Courts make important decisions that affect our lives. For example, it is possible that the recent effort to purge more than 200,000 voters from Wisconsin’s voter rolls could be decided by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Said Bill Kaplan of Urban Milwaukee: “Bread-and-butter pocketbook issues are decided by the court: consumer rights involving defective products, environmental and pollution lawbreaking, workplace rights, protections for minorities, women, farmers and homeowners. Moreover, the court decides safeguards for a democratic society, e.g., corruption and gerrymandering.”

In Wisconsin, unlike some other states, voters choose the justices for our state supreme court. The powerful supreme court decides which cases it will hear on appeal from lower courts and also can hear original cases. The court also has authority over all Wisconsin courts and over the practice of law in the state. By making educated choices about who is elected to the supreme court, we have a say in these important areas

This spring voters will select a justice to serve a 10-year term on the court. The elections for supreme court justice are nonpartisan (although candidates and voters often coalesce along party lines). Wisconsin will be voting in a non-partisan primary Feb. 18 to select two candidates for the April 7 supreme court election. Information about the candidates will be available in newspapers and from the League of Women Voters at lwvdanecounty.org.

The Northside Action Team will be out canvassing this spring, and we’ll be glad to answer any questions you may have about the election. We strongly encourage you to make sure you are registered to vote at your current address by visiting myvote.wi.gov (see related articles on this page).

If you have any questions about voting or elections, contact us at volunteer@natmadison.org.