Milwaukee County Judge Rebecca Dallet says her 11 years as a prosecutor gives her “vital experience” as she runs for a seat on the state Supreme Court.
Dallet, who’s been a Milwaukee County circuit court judge since 2008, announced her bid for the 2018 court race today, saying she’s got the right experience to take on the seat currently occupied by Justice Michael Gableman.
“I have working been in our courts for decades, seeing the issues, seeing the people, seeing the challenges, dealing with the law, working with the law, making the kind of decisions the Supreme Court reviews,” she said.
Gableman, a member of the high court’s conservative majority, hasn’t said whether he’s running for re-election.
But he’s facing a challenge from Dallet and Madison attorney Tim Burns, who announced his candidacy last month.
In an interview with WisPolitics.com today, Dallet said she supports the adoption of a “strong recusal rule” in order to rid the Supreme Court of an “appearance of bias” that she says is “degrading public trust” in the Court.
Still, she didn’t say what that rule would look like and whether it would also apply to lower-court judges. But she said she would have supported holding a public hearing on a proposal, which was rejected on a 5-2 vote, that would have required Supreme Court justices to recuse themselves from cases involving donors who gave $10,000 to their campaigns.
Burns told WisPolitics.com last month he would have supported the rules but also said he would voluntarily abide by the standard if elected.
Burns is pitching himself as a progressive in his Supreme Court bid, and his campaign manager released a statement today saying she’s “excited for a more conservative candidate like Judge Dallet to enter the race.”
“There will be a clear contrast between her and Tim Burns, who will be talking about his progressive values throughout the campaign,” Amanda Brink said. “Voters deserve to know who they are voting for.”
Dallett, meanwhile, said she wasn’t looking to run as a progressive or moderate candidate, adding she rejects “the idea that judges need to be placed in a box.” She said because she shares “values with Wisconsin citizens,” she can run on those, along with the hard work she’s “done for the people of the state of Wisconsin.”
And she said her background and experience made her a “stronger candidate” than Burns.
The two are planning to speak at the state Dem party convention tomorrow in Middleton, according to their campaigns.
See Dallet’s release: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/591f3fb1ff7c500ee3d71455/t/5930329bbf629a4e9e51c6f5/1496330907782/Dallet+-+Announcement+Release+Final+Draft.pdf
