If you haven't heard a lot about the Wisconsin Supreme Court election, you are not alone. The race has a much lower profile than previous campaigns that featured record spending and nonstop commercials.TMJ4'S Chief Political Rep orter Charles Benson talked with both candidates about the nonpartisan ahead of the April 7 election.There is an open seat on the state Supreme Court after Rebecca Bradley, a conservative justice, decided not to seek another 10-year term.Watch: Wisconsin Supreme Court Race: Why the 2026 race looks different Wisconsin Supreme Court race spending lags previous electionRepublican-backed Maria Lazar jumped into the race in October, while Democratic-backed Chris Taylor was the first to jump in earlier last year. Both talked about being independent and impartial on the bench.Judge Lazar was a private practice attorney for 20 years and defended lawsuits against the state and Gov. Scott Walker's administration. In 2015, she was elected a Waukesha County Circuit Court judge and then elected to the Court of Appeals in 2022. Republican-backed Maria Lazar is running for Wisconsin Supreme CourtShe has been endorsed by the Milwaukee Police Association, conservative Justice Annette Ziegler, all six Wisconsin Republicans in Congress, and dozens of judges across the state.When asked if she has conservative views, Lazar emphasized her approach to the courtroom."I would say that personally I'm more of a constitutional conservative. I fiscally would be the same way. I think the importance, the key is that when I go into the courtroom, when I put on my black robe, all of that goes away and my points of view don't matter," Lazar said.Lazar's website and television ads include her view on reproductive rights. In a campaign ad, she stated she will simply uphold the law, including the 20-week compromise.The current 4-3 liberal-leaning court ruled the state's 1849 law does not ban abortion, leaving in place the state's current ban after 20 weeks."The state Supreme Court determined that it was a 20-week, 20-week compromise halfway through the pregnancy, said Lazar."The main guardrails that the legislature puts in place and a court will uphold if they're constitutional are the limits, Lazar said. So it always is something that a woman discusses with her doctor, but the legislature sets that first initial guideline."Judge Taylor currently sits on the appeals court in Madison after being a Dane County Circuit judge. Her prior career put her in the legislature as a Democrat from 2011 to 2020. Democratic-backed Chris Taylor is running for Wisconsin Supreme CourtShe has been endorsed by all four liberal-leaning justices, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, and dozens of Wisconsin judges.When asked if it is fair to say she has liberal views, Taylor pointed to the nature of the race."I am not running. I mean, this is a nonpartisan race. I think the values that I'm running on are Wisconsin values. They are American values. I believe that courts have to play a strong role in protecting individual rights and liberties," Taylor said.Taylor has made abortion an issue in the race, stating in a campaign ad that abortion is on the ballot. She worked eight years doing legal and policy work for Planned Parenthood from 2003 to 2011."As a judge and as a candidate right now, I can talk about my values. I value women's ability to make their own personal private healthcare decisions, but when I'm deciding cases, you are looking at the case in front of you," Taylor said.When I asked if she thinks the law as it is now set by the legislature is the defined law, Taylor declined to answer directly."I can't comment on how I would rule on that law. I can't comment on if that law, if there were a challenge to it, is it constitutional? Those issues might come before me," Taylor said.The last conservative-backed judge to win was Brian Hagedorn in 2019. Since then, liberal-backed candidates have won three straight races, ending 15 years of a conservative majority.The 2025 race turned into record spending with a battle among Democratic and Republican billionaires, mainly with Elon Musk backing Brad Schimel and an endorsement by President Trump.When I asked Lazar if she is glad this is not a $100 million campaign, she agreed."Yes, I am actually. I think that the campaign last year was so extreme, so loud. I think the voters and the citizens of the state of Wisconsin actually have a lot of fatigue after hearing ad after ad after ad, and then just trying to, trying to put that all aside," Lazar said.So far, Taylor has raised more and outspent Lazar in a race where the pace has slowed compared to previous years when the balance of the court was at stake. However, she does not miss the big out-of-state spenders, especially millions from Musk's SuperPAC."That is alarming. That erodes our democracy. I worked when I was in the legislature to have more comprehensive campaign finance laws to prevent what we've seen. So it's alarming, and I am grateful that at least at this point in the campaign we don't have these out-of-state billionaires," Taylor said.This story was reported on-air by Charles Benson and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. 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