Butler, Gableman, Special Interests Weigh In On Supreme Court Race

MADISON, Wis. -- If you believe the onslaught of ads for the state Supreme Court race, one candidate has spent his career working to set criminals free and the other only got where he is because of political favors.

Both Justice Louis Butler and Burnett County Circuit Judge Michael Gableman have denounced the ads that have largely come from unregulated, independent third-party groups. Close observers of the race are urging voters to ignore the ads when considering who to support.

The election is April 1. The winner will serve 10 years.

For some, the campaigns can't end soon enough.

Jay Heck, director of Common Cause Wisconsin, said that the campaign has turned out to be "despicable."

But the race is seen as crucial to the future of the court and could tilt the ideological balance from a 4-3 liberal-leaning majority to a 4-3 conservative-leaning majority.

Butler is looking to hold on to the seat he took in 2004 after being appointed by Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle. Gableman is trying to be the first to knock off an incumbent justice since 1967.

The race is officially nonpartisan.