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Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates at a glance

By: Associated Press//February 15, 2016//

Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates at a glance

By: Associated Press//February 15, 2016//

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The Associated Press

Biographical information about the candidates for Wisconsin Supreme Court (in alphabetical order by last name). The nonpartisan primary election is Tuesday, and the top two vote-getters will advance. Information from campaigns:

NAME — Rebecca Bradley

AGE — 44

EDUCATION — Bachelor’s, Marquette University. Law, University of Wisconsin.

PERSONAL — Engaged to be married, no children.

CAREER — Started legal career representing doctors in malpractice lawsuits and businesses in product liability and injury cases. Later focused on technology and intellectual property law. Appointed to Milwaukee County Circuit Court in 2012. Started in Children’s Court. Appointed to Wisconsin Court of Appeals in spring of 2015. Appointed to state Supreme Court in October. All appointments made by Gov. Scott Walker.

QUOTE — “The role of a justice is to interpret the law, not invent it.”

NAME — Joe Donald

AGE — 58

EDUCATION — Law and bachelor’s degrees from Marquette University.

PERSONAL — Married, three adult children.

CAREER — Appointed to Milwaukee Circuit Court by Gov. Tommy Thompson in 1996. Assigned to general felonies in Criminal Division. Has worked civil, probate, homicide and sexual assault cases. Former Children’s Court chief judge. Helped start drug treatment court and served as its first presiding judge. Drug court seeks to address underlying problems — including poverty, mental illness and addiction — to reduce recidivism and lower costs.

QUOTE — “Politics don’t belong on our court.”

NAME — JoAnne Kloppenburg

AGE — 62

EDUCATION — Bachelor’s, Yale University. Master’s, Princeton University. Law, University of Wisconsin.

PERSONAL — Married, three adult children.

CAREER — Elected to Court of Appeals in 2012. Presiding judge for District Four. Narrowly lost to state Supreme Court Justice David Prosser in hotly contested 2011 election. Previously, served for 23 years as assistant attorney general in Wisconsin Department of Justice. Handled constitutional, administrative and environmental cases. Dealt with all aspects of civil litigation in state and federal courts.

QUOTE — “I alone among the candidates have been to all 72 counties, and I’m struck by people’s shared hopes for the court.”

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