The 2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court election will be held on April 7, 2026, to elect a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for a ten-year term. Incumbent justice Rebecca Bradley chose not to seek re-election after serving on the court since October 2015. As only two candidates filed for this seat, the February 17 nonpartisan primary was not held. The filing deadline to appear on the ballot was January 1, 2026.
Bradley is associated with the conservative minority on the court, meaning that the 2026 election is not expected to affect the ideological majority of the court. However, a liberal victory would result in the court having a 5–2 liberal majority, further solidifying their majority until at least 2030.
Background
The Wisconsin Supreme Court tipped from a 4–3 conservative majority to a 4–3 liberal majority due to the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election, which at that time was the most expensive judicial election in history. The liberals retained their 4–3 majority in the 2025 Wisconsin Supreme Court election, when that race became the most expensive judicial election in history. The incumbent in 2026, Rebecca Bradley, is a member of the conservative minority, and therefore the outcome of the election will not change the court's controlling ideology.
Bradley initially announced in April 2025 that she would run for re-election.[1] Political observers, however, noticed that she was not engaged in any fundraising activity for a re-election campaign, and on August 29, 2025, she announced she was withdrawing from the race.[2]
Historically, it has been rare for incumbents to lose reelection to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Due to this, open-seat races have generally been regarded as valuable opportunities to potentially alter the court's ideological composition.[3] Particularly since only 23 of the more than 136 previous elections held for the court have been for open seats.[4][a] It has also been rare for contested Wisconsin Supreme Court races to be held without the need for a primary.[4]
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