Bradley kicks off Wisconsin Supreme Court campaign

Bradley said she will strictly adhere to the Constitution and won’t “legislate from the bench,” while a pair of sheriffs and a county prosecutor touted her commitment to uphold the law as it’s been written.

The campaign event, tied to Constitution Day, followed Wednesday’s announcement that two-term Supreme Court Justice Patrick Crooks would be retiring. Crooks had been a swing vote between the four-judge conservative majority and two-judge liberal minority.

Bradley will face fellow state appellate court Judge Joanne Kloppenburg and Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Joe Donald in a February primary that will narrow the field to two candidates. The general election is April 5.

Bradley has quickly ascended the judicial ranks since Gov. Scott Walker appointed her to the Milwaukee County Circuit in 2012, a seat she retained by election the next year.

She was mentioned as a Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate by 2014 but declined, saying she was focused on her circuit court work. In May, Walker picked her for the 1st District Court of Appeals in her hometown of Milwaukee.

Bradley’s campaign website boasts bipartisan support, but along with the GOP presence Thursday, her two high court endorsements are from Justice Michael Gableman and retired Justice Jon P. Wilcox, both conservatives.

Liberal advocacy group One Wisconsin Now issued a statement questioning Bradley’s independence, noting her appointments by Walker and her ties to campaign manager Michael Grebe, who is chairman of Walker’s presidential campaign and helped in Bradley’s circuit court victory.

“A hand-picked crony whose past campaigns have been closely overseen by Walker’s political machine seeking more power raises all kinds of red flags for those concerned about an impartial state high court,” Scot Ross, the group’s executive director, said.

Kloppenburg campaign manager Melissa Mulliken echoed that, saying in a statement, “Rebecca Bradley is supported by Gov. Walker, right wing money, and their special interests.”

Mulliken cast Kloppenburg, a favorite of Democrats, as the candidate who would best maintain balance on the court.

Meanwhile, Donald campaign consultant Sachin Chheda said the candidate “has the broadest trial experience as a judge, and he’s the one gaining support from all sides of the spectrum.” Chheda also said the judge wouldn’t represent one side or another.

Bradley, speaking at the Milwaukee County War Memorial Center, promised to run a positive campaign and said she will be a good justice and emphasized a judge’s duty to independently say “what the law is and not what I wish it to be.”