MILWAUKEE COUNTY - On Tuesday, Feb. 7, Judge Janet Protasiewicz agreed to an interview with the Leader prior to the upcoming Feb. 21 primary where two of four candidates will compete for space on the April 4 ballot.
When asked her opinion on reports that the court had issued Republican-favored rulings for more than a decade, and issues coming up over abortion and redistricting rules of elections, Protasiewicz said her opinions would always be based on the law and Constitution despite her personal views or feelings. Regarding abortion, she said she expects there will be a challenge to the 1849 statute, and she believes if a conservative is elected it will stand. She did state, “I can tell you that my personal value is that a woman should have the right to choose and make those reproductive and abortion decisions on her own. And I can tell you that I will definitely have my eyes and ears wide open when I'm listening to the arguments that are going to come before the Supreme Court in regard to the 1849 ban.” Regarding electoral maps, she said it was a “values issue” and that she believes in democracy and sees Wisconsin as a “battleground state,” with some very close elections in the past, and that she feels that there are issues with the makeup of the Legislature reflecting the people in the state. She also said that she would not be surprised to see other voting cases come before the court in the future, such as drop box issues or a potential contesting of the 2024 presidential election, given the closeness of prior elections in the state.
When asked for her thoughts about the race as being officially nonpartisan – yet candidates are aligned with parties – and her personal experience, Protasiewicz stated that while she is “generally progressive on social issues, personally … you have to follow the law and uphold the Constitution across the board.” She also said, “There are laws I may like, laws I may not like, you follow the law. So personal opinions and thoughts have to be put aside. Nonetheless, I think it's important for voters to know what a person's values are, rather than having a candidate who simply says, ‘I'm going to hold the Constitution and follow the law,’ really doesn't tell people a lot. I think people in the state are entitled to know what a candidate's values are. So I'm going to tell you what my values are in regard to their maps, I’m going to tell you what my values are in regard to a woman's right to choose. I think that many people will say ‘yes, that aligns more left than right,’ but I will also say this, there are lots of other issues that are going to come before the court, lots of corporate issues, you know, community safety issues. I spent my life as a prosecutor, as a judge, and in homicide and sexual assault court, handling some of the most violent, challenging difficult cases in Milwaukee County. And that's, to me, that's nonpartisan, community safety. We hope everybody wants safe communities, everybody wants their family and friends to be able to enjoy their communities safely. So some of these issues sound like I lean a little more left, but a lot of these issues are really just nonpartisan issues that everybody cares about.”
For a final question, Protasiewicz was asked about what she felt was most important to her campaign and the potential effects of a shift in the balance to a liberal majority. Protasiewicz stated that she felt the current court had “extreme partisanship” and that it needs to stop. She said she believed that her statewide campaign, which included fundraising and education that she says will bring change and common sense back to the balance of the court, is what she believes will be effective, saying she travels frequently talking about a fair and impartial judiciary.
For history on the judge, Protasiewicz earned her law degree at Marquette University, where she later served as an adjunct professor of law. Protasiewicz also trained prosecutors with the United States Department of Justice with the National Advocacy Center, served on multiple boards, has been recognized for her level of community involvement and as a woman involved in the law. After 25 years as assistant district attorney, she currently serves in Family Court and has also presided over homicide, sexual assault, misdemeanor, domestic violence and drug courts, and has spent nearly a decade as a circuit court judge. She and her husband, Gregory Sell, live in Franklin.
