Conservatives despondent after Democrats’ Wisconsin victory: “Very bad day”

• On Tuesday, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz won the election for Wisconsin’s Supreme Court, defeating Republican-backed candidate Daniel Kelly.
• This will give the court an effective 4-3 liberal majority, prompting conservatives to express their concern.
• Fox News host Laura Ingraham suggested that the GOP needed to gain more votes, while Charlie Kirk attributed the result to the “collapse” of the country.

Democrats scored a major victory in Wisconsin on Tuesday as Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz secured election to the state’s supreme court and defeated Republican-backed candidate Daniel Kelly.

Conservatives reacted to Protasiewicz’s victory with concern and some questioned the Republican Party’s strategy both in Wisconsin and throughout the country following Kelly’s defeat.

Tuesday’s election means that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will now have an effective 4-3 liberal majority, which could open the door to challenges to maps for the U.S. House of Representatives that currently favor Republicans.

The court’s composition could also play a major national role if any challenges are brought against presidential election results in the state in 2024. The court refused to hear a 2020 challenge by former President Donald Trump, who lost Wisconsin to President Joe Biden.

Fox News host Laura Ingraham mentioned the Wisconsin result on her show on Tuesday and suggested that the GOP was facing difficulties.

“And we find out tonight that the Wisconsin Supreme Court flipped and became controlled by the Democrats. There was that one race they thought might go to the Republicans. Republicans lost that,” Ingraham said.

“So, the Republican Party has enormous challenges even in the headwinds that the Democrats have created with this horrific economy,” she went on. “So you gotta get more votes somewhere. You gotta get the votes in order to have the power.”

“Democrats, last election in the midterms, had the votes. More votes than they thought they were gonna get,” Ingraham added.

Charlie Kirk, founder and CEO of conservative group Turning Point USA, placed the Wisconsin Supreme Court election in the context of other recent events.

“Trump arraigned, Marxist wins Mayoral race in Chicago, and Democrats flip Supreme Court in Wisconsin. Very bad day. No spin, no bs. Country is in collapse. We need God and dutiful action,” Kirk tweeted.

He was referring to the election of progressive Democrat Brandon Johnson as the next mayor of Chicago and the arraignment of Trump on 34 counts of falsifying business records in Manhattan, both of which took place on Tuesday.

Responding to Kirk, conservative political commentator and Newsmax contributor Jeremy Frankel wrote: “Such as what at this point? We can still win 2024, but changes need to be made ASAP. What they are, I’m not sure. But definitely one is not to get distracted, which too many of us do.”

“100 percent and we need a better national party apparatus. They aren’t getting it done,” tweeted director and producer Robby Starbuck in response to Kirk’s initial tweet.

Conservative commentator and author Ann Coulter wrote: “The demand for anti-abortion legislation just cost Republicans another crucial race.”

“Pro-lifers: WE WON. Abortion is not a ‘constitutional right’ anymore! Please stop pushing strict limits on abortion, or there will be no Republicans left,” Coulter added.

She was referring to the fact that abortion was one of the major issues in the Wisconsin Supreme Court campaign. The election came ahead of an expected decision by the court in the coming months on whether to upheld Wisconsin’s 1849 ban on abortion.

Newsweek has reached out to the Protasiewicz campaign via email for comment.