Wisconsin
Control of Wisconsin Supreme Court will be up for grabs after liberal justice's surprise retirement
One year after a closely-watched election tipped the Wisconsin Supreme Court towards a 4-3 liberal majority, the impending retirement of a liberal justice, Ann Walsh Bradley, is teeing off another battle for control of the state’s highest court.
Bradley announced Thursday that she will not be run in the April 2025 election for another 10-year term, NBC News reported.
“My decision has not come lightly,” Bradley wrote in a statement. “It is made after careful consideration and reflection. I know I can do the job and do it well. I know I can win re-election should I run, but it’s just time to pass the torch.”
The Wisconsin court’s ideological balance has enormous ramifications for a range of issues, including abortion access and redistricting. Conservatives long held the reins of legislative and judicial power in Wisconsin until the most expensive state Supreme Court campaign in U.S. history elevated liberal justice Janet Protasiewicz to the bench in April 2023. Her victory was followed by GOP threats to impeach her.
The new liberal majority (the court is technically nonpartisan) promptly ruled that the GOP gerrymander of Wisconsin’s state legislative maps was unconstitutional. New, compromise maps that were agreed to by the legislature and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers provide Democrats with an opening to make gains in the state legislature, where they have struggled to gain control despite recently winning a skew of statewide elections.
With the last Wisconsin Supreme Court election as precedent, gerrymandering and reproductive rights will almost certainly be at the forefront of a bitter and expensive 2025 election. Former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel announced last year that he intends to run for a seat on the highest court. With Bradley’s retirement, many others are likely to join the competition.
MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – A Columbia County restaurant has earned the title of making Wisconsin’s best burger.
Awarded by the Wisconsin Beef Council, the Tennessee Whiskey Burger from Dump Bar and Grill in Cambria is this year’s winner.
The content promotes 100% beef burgers made in Wisconsin restaurants.
The Dump earned the highest ranking from a secret panel of three judges who travel to the elite eight restaurants.
The dump has been nominated by customers for three years in a row.
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Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield shares his biggest spring takeaway
Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield shared his biggest takeaway from the spring following the Badgers’ four-set win over Northern Illinois.
MADISON – Wisconsin volleyball got one last tune-up in the spring.
The Badgers, while showing some things that still need to be tuned up, ultimately won four sets against Northern Illinois, 25-18, 25-18, 25-13, 25-22, on April 24 at the UW Field House to conclude their spring schedule.
UW and Northern Illinois planned to play four sets regardless of the outcome of the first three sets (although they did not record stats for the fourth set).
The second and third sets had a combined 13 ties and six lead changes in the four sets as the Badgers faced a Northern Illinois team with only eight players (and no players taller than 6-foot-2). UW broke free in the third set with a 12-0 scoring run, but the fourth set was tied as late as 21-21.
Here are three takeaways from the Badgers’ win:
Eva Travis, Jaela Auguste again have starring roles (and highlight-worthy kills)
Eva Travis’ first spring after playing in the Big West ended with a big performance against Northern Illinois, recording 10 kills while hitting .643 as she started the first two sets and subbed in for the third set.
“Eva’s getting a lot better,” Sheffield said. “That’s not to say that she hasn’t had a great first freshman and sophomore year because she did. But where she’s been the last two weeks versus the first month here – she’s really settling in and becoming the player that we thought she was capable of being when we went after her in the portal.”
Fellow transfer Jaela Auguste also had 10 kills while hitting .769 and recording four blocks. Sheffield will especially remember one of those 10 kills – an authoritative blow off a one-handed set by Charlie Fuerbringer that excited the UW Field House crowd.
“That’s probably one of the top five highlights this building has even seen,” Sheffield said. “Unfortunately, we threw the next ball into the net when we were serving. But for that one fleeting moment, that was a pretty sweet play.”
Travis and Auguste’s starring roles were a similar story as six days earlier, when Travis had eight kills and Auguste had 10 against UW-Green Bay. Auguste also had six blocks in the road win.
Wisconsin’s depth on display against Huskies
While Auguste and Travis were at the top of UW’s box score, the Badgers also showcased the depth of their attack in the win over Northern Illinois.
Freshman outside hitters Audrey Flanagan and Halle Thompson each had seven kills. (Flanagan hit .455, and Thompson hit .353.) Sophomore middle blocker Natalie Wardlow had six kills while hitting .625.
Freshman middle blocker Lynney Tarnow’s stat line did not jump out as much – three kills while hitting .429 – but one of those was practically a bullet down the right side that landed right in front of the NIU back row.
Eight of the 10 non-libero UW players recorded at least two kills in the three sets that counted toward the official stats, and those eight players each hit above .350 in the process. The Badgers hit .525 as a whole.
That was all while the Badgers were once again without Grace Egan and Grace Lopez amid their continued injury recoveries. Neither player saw the floor in any of UW’s three spring matches.
“It’ll be a nice parlor game trying to figure out who’s going to play for this team,” Sheffield said. “Especially on the pins, there’s a lot of capable players, and we had some of them that didn’t even get in today.”
Wisconsin gets sloppy from service line
The Badgers certainly did not have their finest showing from the service line in their spring finale against Northern Illinois.
UW had 14 service errors while recording only three service aces in the three sets where the team kept official stats. Those 14 errors came from eight UW players, as Sheffield said jokingly that “everybody felt like it was their duty to miss two or three.”
“In three [sets]? You’re too kind not counting the fourth set,” Sheffield said. “It was sloppier than it’s been in previous matches. … Sometimes that can be a little bit contagious, like free-throw shooting.”
The 14 service errors against NIU were up from Wisconsin’s seven in the first three sets against UW-Green Bay and 11 in four sets against Marquette. Sheffield seems unlikely to lose too much sleep over the woes at the service line, though.
“I really think that’s going to end up being a strength of ours, so I’m not overly that concerned,” Sheffield said. “We’ve been really good behind the service line in the other matches that we played. We’ve been really good behind the service line in practices.”
Drone view of wildfire smoke from Canada over downtown Milwaukee
A blanket of smoke from Canadian wildfires drifts into downtown Milwaukee. It’s expected to move back north on Aug. 1.
Wisconsin is having fewer wildfires now than in past years, and officials say it’s because residents are being smarter and safer.
More than 700 acres of Wisconsin have been burned in 300 wildfires so far in 2026, according to the state’s wildfire dashboard. That’s 20 fewer wildfires burning about 400 fewer acres when compared to the state’s 10-year average by this time of year.
Catherine Koele, a wildfire prevention specialist at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said it’s a common misconception that Wisconsin doesn’t have many wildfires – people usually think of California when they think of wildfires.
But wildfires do happen in Wisconsin. In the past 10 years, the state has averaged about 900 wildfires burning nearly 2,000 acres annually, state data shows. Just this week, a red flag warning was issued for Burnett and Washburn counties in northwestern Wisconsin. A red flag warning is issued when factors combine to create especially dangerous wildfire conditions.
“Fires do happen here and more often than people think,” Koele told the Journal Sentinel. “The biggest difference is that 98% of our fires are caused by people.”
Why has Wisconsin seen fewer wildfires so far this year?
In the western United States, wildfire season usually lasts from summer to early fall. But that part of the country has different vegetation, and fires are often started by lightning and bolstered by strong winds, Koele said.
A third of Wisconsin’s wildfires are caused by burning debris, like landowners burning yard waste and losing control of the flames. Koele said the situation has improved somewhat thanks to more citizen reporting and improved technology.
She explained that people are more aware of times when conditions are especially prone to wildfires, including in early spring, after the snow melts but no rain has fallen yet, meaning grass, leaves and pine needles are dry. While climate change has brought more rain to Wisconsin, it’s also sporadic, she said. Mild winters also extend the peak danger season for wildfires.
Koele said there are also proactive steps people can take to prevent wildfires.
How can I prevent wildfires?
It’s important to know what burn restrictions are in place and to get a burn permit. Composting, recycling or chipping wood debris before burning is also important, Koele said.
She also echoed sentiments from Smokey Bear:
- Drown and stir campfires. Repeat this process until the embers are cold
- Don’t use fireworks or hot equipment on dry or grassy areas
- Never leave a fire unattended
Koele said wildfire prevention “reduces stress on wildlife, protects the aesthetic beauty of our forests and reduces the cost of firefighting efforts and economic losses associated with property damage, timber loss and large-scale evacuations.”
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