Dane Co. Judge Maryann Sumi considering run for state Supreme Court

MADISON (AP) — A Dane County judge who drew fire from conservatives for a ruling last year halting implementation of Gov. Scott Walker's collective bargaining law is considering running for the Wisconsin Supreme Court next year.

Judge Maryann Sumi said she is seriously considering running against conservative Justice Patience Roggensack. Sumi said she is working with a nonpartisan group of people helping her explore the possibility of a run.

Messages left Thursday, November 8th with both Sumi and Roggensack were not immediately returned.

Races for the state Supreme Court are officially nonpartisan, but they have grown costly and more and more political in recent years. Opponents of Walker turned last year's race between Justice David Prosser and challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg into a referendum on Walker's law effectively ending collective bargaining rights for most public workers.

A Sumi candidacy would almost certainly guarantee another bitter battle, given how her ruling last year angered conservatives and emboldened Walker opponents.

Sumi was appointed to the bench in 1998 by Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson. She has won re-election three times since, most recently last year, for a term that ends in 2017.