April 7 (UPI) — Wisconsin and Georgia are facing competitive primaries Tuesday as Wisconsin looks to add someone to the state supreme court while Georgia works to replace resigned Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
In Wisconsin, a battleground state, liberals hope to expand their majority on the state’s high court. In Georgia, a runoff election will decide which candidate will replace Greene in the House of Representatives.
Chris Taylor, who is backed by Democrats, and Maria Lazar, backed by Republicans, are vying for the seat of retiring conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley. The race is officially nonpartisan, but political parties back their favorite candidates.
As of last week, $8.9 million had been spent on the campaign.
Last year, liberal Susan Crawford won against Republican-backed Brad Schimel, even though billionaire Elon Musk poured huge amounts of money into his campaign. That gave the liberals a majority on the court, and they hope to strengthen it in this race.
Liberal candidates have won the last three supreme court races by double digits in Wisconsin.
Taylor is an appeals court judge and formerly a state legislator and policy director for Wisconsin’s Planned Parenthood. Her campaign has focused on reproductive rights, rising costs and cuts to food programs. Former President Barack Obama and former Attorney General Eric Holder have backed Taylor.
Lazar is also an appeals court judge who worked for former Republican Gov. Scott Walker. Her campaign has mostly been about Taylor’s former work as a legislator.
Democrats and Democrat-backed candidates have won 18 of the past 23 statewide races in Wisconsin, though Trump took the state in 2016 and 2024.
A Marquette University poll showed that 56% of registered voters in the state disapproved of Trump’s performance.
“I don’t think it’s ever been more important in my lifetime to have a strong court that’s going to stand up for our rights and freedoms, stand up for our democracy, our elections, and make sure that we are resisting this overreach we’re seeing from the federal government,” Taylor said last week in her closing address.
Lazar said she knew her candidacy “was an uphill battle,” but said, “I just honestly believe that people in my state really want an independent and good justice on this court, and that’s what I will be.”
Polls close in Wisconsin at 9 p.m. ET.
In Georgia, Republican prosecutor Clay Fuller and cattle rancher and retired brigadier general Shawn Harris are battling it out in a runoff election to replace Greene.
Last month, neither candidate won a majority but Harris had more votes. Most attribute that to the number of Republicans running. So, Fuller is the favorite to win.
Fuller calls himself the best choice for those who “100% support President Trump” and was endorsed by the president. While President Donald Trump’s approval rating is trending low, the district chose the president by 37% in 2024.
Harris raised $6.4 million in this election, and his ads attacked politicians from both parties who “don’t understand how difficult things are for hard working Georgians.”
The winner on Tuesday will fill the seat for the rest of Greene’s term, which ends in January 2027. Both candidates have filed to run in the primary in May and the elections in November.
Polls close in Georgia at 7 p.m. ET.
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