Being one of the guv’s appointees still appears to carry some baggage in Dane County judicial races. But insiders say a connection with Walker isn’t nearly as much of an issue in the rest of the state, not even in heavily Dem Milwaukee County. Only five circuit court incumbents drew a challenger this spring, and all five had a connection to Walker of some sort. In Dane County, Judge Rebecca St. John lost to attorney Rhonda Lanford, who ran a TV ad that knocked the incumbent as a Walker appointee. Lanford's campaign says the race was about experience and the issues, but others see a clear play to tie St. John to a guv whose numbers are less than stellar in the state’s most liberal county. Some conservatives caution the right candidate with the right message and campaign could still win in liberal Dane County, but acknowledge the resentment that remains. In Milwaukee County, Assistant DA Janet Protasiewicz tried a similar tactic against Judge Rebecca Bradley, saying Walker appointed Bradley after she donated to his campaign. But the incumbent fends off the attack in retaining the seat. Insiders on both sides credit her with running a great campaign and note she played up a bipartisan image in touting the endorsements of Dems like County Exec Chris Abele and former DA E. Michael McCann along with ultraconservative Dem David Clarke, the sheriff. That caught the public’s attention more than her past presidency of the conservative Federalist Society. The race also illustrates the importance of spring turnout for Milwaukee County Dems. They couldn't take out Bradley yesterday, but last year, when 16,000 more people in the county voted, liberals were able to pick off a Walker appointee. Elsewhere, Walker appointees to northern Wisconsin circuit court seats had split results. But those races were more about where the incumbents lived prior to their appointments -- one in a different county, another across the state line until a year before his election -- than their ties to Walker. In Ozaukee County, there was a different Walker connection. Judge Tom Wolfgram is skunked after attorney Joe Voiland made the race largely about the incumbent’s decision to sign a petition seeking Walker’s recall. Beyond raising questions of whether it’s appropriate for a judge to sign a recall petition, the move does not play well in conservative Ozaukee County. Some insiders note the results there and in Dane County show the lingering effects of the Act 10 battle from two years ago. While some liberals will never get over Walker’s moves on collective bargaining, some conservatives will never forgive those who sought to recall the guv .
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