Early voting for the April 1 election is now underway.
Judges Brad Schimel and Susan Crawford are running for a state Supreme Court seat.
That race will determine the balance of power in the court.
Liberal Justice Ann Walsh Bradley is the only one not seeking re-election, so if Crawford wins, it will maintain a liberal majority.
If Schimel wins, the court will flip to a conservative majority.
Chief Political Reporter Charles Benson talked with voters about what drove them to the polls.
A steady line of voters formed inside Milwaukee's Zeidler Building in a spring election that once again captured the nation’s attention.
Billionaires on both sides of the aisle are dropping big dollars to see which way the state Supreme Court should lean.
Patrick Flanagan is voting early for a couple of reasons.
"To get it out of the way, basically," said Flanagan. "It's very important because they are very involved in a lot of issues—particularly with the court being so split."
There's no doubt voters have been bombarded with campaign ads and door knocks.
Estimates already show the $60 million in campaign spending for a 10-year term on the bench has broken the previous record set in 2023, meaning Wisconsin has the most expensive Supreme Court races ever in the country.
Are voters surprised by the spending trend?
"Not anymore—it happens in every election. Money is driving everything in politics now," said Flanagan.
Watch: Milwaukee voters talk about State Supreme Court race
The state Supreme Court currently has a 4-3 liberal majority, but an open seat from a retiring justice puts the court in play once again.
"There's no way I was going to miss this one," said Milwaukee voter Ellen Bartel.
She's interested in all the races on the ballot this spring but Bartel also noticed the millions being spent for a the state Supreme Court job that is supposed to be non-partisan.
"I think it's a sign of the times with that much out-of-state money flooding in, but it's an important race," said Bartel. "I would say I haven't been influenced by the ads; I think there are some on both sides that are pretty atrocious."
What about turnout for this off-year election?
The presidential election last November produced 3.4 million voters. The state Supreme Court race two years ago had 1.8 million voters.
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