A Wisconsin Appeals Court election was shaping up to break records until a candidate (D) got kicked off the ballot
In recent years, spending on two Court of Appeals campaigns in the Waukesha-based District 2 exceeded the million-dollar mark far short of the national record $144.5 million spent on the 2025 Supreme Court race, yet almost certainly unprecedented for Wisconsin appellate elections.
Now another seat is open in that same district, with the upcoming retirement of Presiding Judge Lisa Neubauer, the lone liberal among the districts four jurists.
The race to replace Neubauer effectively ended Jan. 13, when the Wisconsin Elections Commission disqualified candidate Christine Hansen, an administrative law judge for the state Department of Corrections. Barring a write-in campaign, attorney Anthony LoCoco known for his work with the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty and Institute for Reforming Government will be unopposed in the officially nonpartisan April 7 election.
Hansens husband notarized her declaration of candidacy, which is against state law. On the recommendation of its staff, the bipartisan commission voted 5-1 to block her from the ballot.
https://wisconsinwatch.org/2026/02/wisconsin-appeals-court-election-spending-record-candidate-ballot-expensive-campaign/