Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor, a former Dem lawmaker, is formally launching her bid for state Supreme Court in 2026, when liberals will look to expand their majority.

She’s poised to take on conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley, who told WisPolitics last month she plans to seek another 10-year term. Liberals now control the high court by a 4-3 edge, so a Bradley loss would give them a 5-2 margin.

“Justice Rebecca Bradley has prioritized a right-wing agenda over keeping the judiciary fair and independent, in my opinion, and she is just not the justice that Wisconsinites deserve and need on the Supreme Court,” Taylor told WisPolitics in a phone interview.

Taylor worked as a policy director for Planned Parenthood before serving nearly a decade in the Assembly representing a Madison district. Dem Gov. Tony Evers in 2020 appointed her to the Dane County Circuit Court, and she won her seat on the Madison-based 4th District Court of Appeals in 2023 without opposition.

All four liberal justices on the state Supreme Court when the new term begins in August will be women who were judges when they were elected and had previously worked as prosecutors. 

Taylor said in the interview her lack of prosecutorial experience isn’t a hindrance in her bid. She argued no one else on the state’s highest court has her experience as a lawmaker, along with her 30-year legal career. And that’s taught her that “the people are the center of government, and the people are the center of the judiciary.”

Taylor added she believes being in the Legislature has made her a better judge.

“Being in the Legislature, I think, has really reinforced my commitment to putting people at the center of the judicial system,” Taylor said. “Laws are about people, and I never forget that every decision is impacting somebody.”

A primary, if needed, will be in February with the spring election on April 7.

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