Walker appoints Bradley to Wisconsin Supreme Court

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Gov. Scott Walker has appointed Judge Rebecca Bradley to the vacancy left on the Wisconsin Supreme Court when a sitting justice died.

Walker announced the appointment at a Friday morning press conference also attended by Chief Justice Pat Roggensack and Bradley. It marked the third time Walker has appointed Bradley to a judicial opening in three years.

She will complete the nine months that were remaining in the term of Justice N. Patrick Crooks, who died last month. Crooks, 77, had not been seeking a third term, and it is his seat that is coming up for a full 10-year term next spring.

Roggensack welcomed Bradley and  thanked Walker for the appointment, noting that the court functions better when it has a full bench. The court is set to hear oral arguments Monday and Bradley will be present, said Tom Sheehan, court information officer. But he said a time has not yet been set for when Bradley will be sworn in.

Walker said Bradley will be meeting Friday with Roggensack and Court of Appeals Chief Judge Lisa Neubauer to discuss Bradley’s transition to the court, including what Supreme Court cases she may have to recuse herself from.

Walker said the appointment was not a political endorsement. He instead said he thinks that Bradley is the best person to serve on the court now and will be the best person to serve on the court in the spring, when the seat will be filled by an election. Walker said he hopes Wisconsin voters will agree.

The appointment allows Bradley to run as the incumbent in the April 5 election. Two other candidates — 4th District Appeals Court Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg and Milwaukee Circuit Judge Joe Donald — did not apply for the vacancy.

Both Bradley and Walker said the appointment will not affect the April 5 general election.

“I think when the voters are evaluating judicial candidates they look less at who’s appointed them and they look at their record on the bench, how they conducted their campaigns and what their qualifications and experiences are,” Bradley said at the news conference announcing her appointment. “I don’t think they look at who has appointed that judge or justice.”

Walker said voters will evaluate Bradley based on how she does as a Supreme Court justice between now and the April 5 election.

“Whether you like me, dislike me, or are somewhere in between, even for those people who are ardent supporters of mine, they shouldn’t be looking at the appointment,” Walker said. “What they should be looking at is: Is this the best person qualified to be on the Wisconsin Supreme Court?”

The primary Feb. 16 will whittle the field down to two candidates who will then face each other in the April 5 general election. The term begins in August, when Bradley’s temporary appointment ends.

Walker’s decision to appoint Bradley to the officially nonpartisan court was expected, given that he had previously named her to two other judicial posts and her run for the Supreme Court was backed by conservatives who also support Walker.

The governor selected her over Dane County Circuit Judge Jim Troupis and Madison attorney Claude Covelli. Walker in May appointed Troupis, an attorney who previously worked for Republicans, to his current position.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.