Chris Taylor defeated Maria S. Lazar in the general election for Wisconsin Supreme Court on April 7, 2026. As a result, the Court's liberal majority expanded from 4-3 to 5-2. Incumbent Rebecca Bradley did not run for re-election.

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court elections are officially nonpartisan, but candidates often take stances on specific issues and receive backing from the state's political parties. Taylor was a former Democratic member of the Wisconsin Assembly. Lazar described herself as a constitutional conservative. She worked in the state's attorney general's office under J.B. Van Hollen (R). Bradley was a member of the court's conservative minority.

Before the election, the Associated Press' Scott Bauer wrote, "The winner is elected to a 10-year term on the state’s highest court, with several hot-button issues pending including challenges to congressional district maps and the future of a state law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. The next justice will be on the court in the lead-up to the November midterm election where Wisconsin voters will elect a new governor and decide who controls the state Legislature."

Taylor was a judge for District IV of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals. She was a judge on the Dane County Circuit Court from 2020 to 2023 and a Democratic state legislator from 2011 to 2020. She also previously worked as the public policy director for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin.

Taylor's campaign website said, "Her judicial philosophy is people-centered, grounded in making sure individuals get a fair chance in our courts, and that their Constitutional rights are protected. ... She is a strong advocate for maintaining the independence of the judiciary, which must also serve as a check on the other branches of government."

Lazar was a judge for District II of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals. She was a judge on the Waukesha County Circuit Court from 2015 to 2021 and an assistant attorney general for the Wisconsin Department of Justice from 2010 to 2015. Before that, she worked in private practice.

On her campaign website, Lazar described her judicial philosophy: "First, our written laws are a fundamental pillar in our democracy, and a judge must be independent of agendas, parties, and bias. Next, the law is to be a level playing field: no person is above or beneath the law."

Liberals first won a 4-3 majority in the April 2023 election, when Janet Protasiewicz won an open seat, defeating Daniel Kelly 55.4% to 44.4% and shifting ideological control of the Court for the first time in 15 years. In April 2025, liberals retained their 4-3 majority, when Susan Crawford defeated Brad Schimel 55.0% to 44.9%. The last time a conservative won an election for Wisconsin Supreme Court was in 2019, when Brian Hagedorn defeated Lisa Neubauer 50.2% to 49.7%.

Campaign finance reports covering activity from early February to mid-March show that Taylor rasied $2.1 million and Lazar raised $472,000. The 2023 and 2025 races broke records as the most expensive judicial races in U.S. history. According to WisPolitics, the candidates and satellite groups spent more than $100 million in the 2025 election and more than $56 million in the 2023 election.

The 2025 election also had record voter turnout for a Wisconsin spring election in a non-presidential election year at 50%. The previous record was in 2023, when turnout was 39.7%. Turnout in Wisconsin’s November 2024 general election was 73% and turnout in November 2022 was 57.2%.

Wisconsin also held elections for three intermediate appellate court judges in April 2026. In November 2026, the state will hold elections for U.S. House and governor, as well as various other state executive and state legislative offices.