Mar. 20, 2023 – The State Bar of Wisconsin, along with its partners, WisPolitics.com and WISC-TV, will host a debate between the candidates for Wisconsin Supreme Court, ​Daniel Kelly and Janet Protasiewicz on Tuesday, March 21 at 12:45 p.m.

The debate will be held at the State Bar Center in Madison and will be moderated by WISC-TV 3 Anchor Susan Siman, with panelists JR Ross (Capitol Correspondent, Wispolitics.com), Emilee Fannon (CBS 58 Capitol Correspondent), and Will Kenneally (Political Reporter, WISC-TV 3). At this time, this is the only debate-format appearance that has been announced between both candidates.

National Coverage

The 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race has drawn national media attention as many observers believe the outcome will signal political trends heading into the 2024 elections.

In addition to partners WISC-TV 3 and Wispolitics.com, other media covering the event and attending the debate live include Associated Press, The Guardian, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), NBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post​, CNN, and ZUMA Press.

Local coverage will include ABC 12 (WISN), CBS 58 (WDJT), Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, NBC 26 (WGBA), Spectrum News 1, Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Examiner, Wisconsin State Journal, Wisconsin Watch, and WUWM 89.7 FM (WPR).

Where to View the Debate

The event will be livestreamed on www.channel3000.com/watch/. The debate will also be broadcast on WISC-TV in Madison and WKBT in La Crosse at 4 p.m. The recorded livestream will be available for later viewing on www.channel3000.com. At this time, in-person registration is full and new RSVP’s are not being added to the waitlist. If you have any questions about in-person attendance, please direct them to Devin Martin at dmartin@wisbar.org.

Candidates

Daniel Kelly received a bachelor's degree in political science and Spanish from Carroll University in 1986 and a J.D. from Regent University School of Law in 1991. From 1998 to 2013, Kelly was a shareholder at Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren. He was vice president and general counsel for the Kern Family Foundation from 2013 to 2014. In 2014, he became a founding partner at Rogahn Kelly LLC. In 2016, Gov. Scott Walker (R) appointed Kelly to succeed Justice David T. Prosser, who retired. Kelly left office at the end of his term on Aug. 1, 2020, after being defeated in the April 2020 election. In 2020, he founded Daniel Kelly Consulting and became a senior fellow at the Institute for Reforming Government.

Janet Protasiewicz received a bachelor's degree in history from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1985 and a J.D. from Marquette University Law School in 1988. Protasiewicz was a Milwaukee County assistant district attorney for 26 years before she was elected to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in 2014. She serves as a judge for Branch 24, where her current term ends on Aug. 1, 2026. Protasiewicz also served as an adjunct law professor at Marquette Law School.