Sauk County Circuit Court Judge Michael Screnock announced today he’ll run for Michael Gableman’s spot on the state Supreme Court, saying he shares the incumbent’s “belief that it is the role of a judge to say what the law is and not what it should be.”
Screnock becomes the first new candidate to publicly announce intentions to run for the court following Gableman’s announcement yesterday that he won’t seek re-election. He joins Madison attorney Tim Burns and Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Dallet in the race.
“Judges must respect the different roles of the court and Legislature and should not legislate from the bench,” Screnock said in his announcement.
Gov. Scott Walker appointed Screnock to the Sauk County bench in 2015, and he was unopposed when he rean to retain the seat last year. He worked as a city administrator and finance director in three Wisconsin cities before going to UW-Madison to get his law degree. He worked at Michael Best & Friedrich before his appointment.
Meanwhile, Waukesha County Judge Jennifer Dorow said she’s taking a pass on running for the seat. Dorow had expressed an interest in applying last year to replace David Prosser after he retired from the court, but ultimately decided against it. Dorow, who was appointed last month to become chief judge in the Third Judicial Administrative District effective Aug. 1, said she’s still interested in running for the court in 2019, when Shirley Abrahamson’s seat would be up for election.
“Two thousand eighteen will not be the year for me,” she said.
