Loudenslager accuses opponents in District III Court of Appeals race of having special interests

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Aaron Loudenslager, one of the candidates in the race for District III Court of Appeals, is accusing his two opponents of having special interests, political connections and ties to wealthy donors.

Loudenslager, a Madison criminal-defense and appellate law attorney, is running for the position against Rick Cveykus, a Wausau lawyer who practices criminal law, family law and small claims; and the Outagamie County Judge Greg Gill Jr.

In a press release sent on Monday, Loudenslager said he’s the only candidate discussing what he called the two “fundamental issues” affecting the Wisconsin judiciary: what he deemed the influence of outside monetary contributions in judicial elections and a lack of support staff throughout the system. His opponents, meanwhile, are ignoring their ties to politically connected and wealthy individuals, Loudenslager said.

Gill, for example, worked at his family’s law firm, Gill & Gill in Appleton before serving as a judge. The firm represents management interests in matters pertaining to business, corporate, and labor and employment law.

“Today, Judge Gill Jr. still has ties to wealthy individuals—and corporate interests,” Loudenslager said.

Loudenslager took exception to Court of Appeals Judge Thomas Hruz’s support of Gill and two people involved in Gill’s campaign. One of them is Landis Holdorf, Gill’s campaign manager. Holdorf works for the Republican Party of Wisconsin as a senior data analyst, according to Holdorf’s LinkedIn page. He also served as campaign manager for two Republican Assembly candidates, Scott Soik and Calvin Callahan.

Holdorf said the campaign did not have a comment on Loudenslager’s remarks.

Cveykus is working with Nation Consulting on his campaign. Loudenslager said hiring the firm and Cveykus’s history of giving money to various political campaigns shows Cveykus has political connections.

According to the nonpartisan Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Cveykus made $2,400 in contributions to candidates over the past 10 years. He’s supported justices Jill Karofsky, Rebecca Dallet and Ann Walsh Bradley, along with the Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and several other Democrats. Cveykus also gave $10 earmarked for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in May, according to data from the Federal Election Commission.

Searches of both databases for “Aaron Loudenslager” produced no results.

Meanwhile, a Wisconsin Democracy Campaign search for “Greg Gill” revealed various contributions but did not show whether the money came from Gill Jr. or Gregory Gill Sr. However, Gill & Gill was listed as the donor’s employer, and the contributions were made during years that Gill Jr. was serving on the Outagamie County Circuit Court, suggesting the contributions most likely came from Gill Sr. It’s unclear if $750 in contributions to Scott Walker in 2010 by Gregory B. Gill came from Gill Jr. or Gill Sr. A search of the Federal Election Commission’s database for Gill returned no results.

“But maybe as judicial candidates—and current judges—we just need to get back to basics at the moment,” Loudenslager said. “And instead of pandering to partisan interests and the affluent, maybe we should just make sure we are conducting ourselves in such a manner that communicates to the public that we are truly independent adjudicators of our justice system and free from partisan interests.”

In a statement, Cveykus said he’s also concerned about outside influences on the court.

“I support the creation of a stronger recusal rule, more open administrative processes, and have pledged to be an impartial, honest, fair, and transparent judge,” Cveykus said.

Cveykus said he plans to use his wisdom to reform judicial practices in Wisconsin. That’s why, he said, Republicans, Democrats and Independents throughout the norther part of the state support his campaign. He also said he is respectful of anyone who wants to serve the public.

“I do not think it is healthy to the judiciary to attack candidates that we do not know, and I will just make clear that I wish them all the best of luck in their future endeavors,” Cveykus said.

The candidates are now collecting signatures they need to get on the ballot for the April 2021 election. Each candidate must collect 1,000 signatures to appear. The election is scheduled for April 6, 2021. Follow @WLJReporter