Ahead Of Primary Vote, Democratic Candidates For Wisconsin Attorney General Make Their Case

The three-way race in the Democratic primary for Wisconsin attorney general pits two county district attorneys against a veteran legislator from Milwaukee. And as the election draws near, all three candidates are doing their best to convince voters they have what it takes to be the state’s top cop.

At a debate this week at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School, the trio of candidates faced a barrage of questions from law students who wanted to know their views on defending the state’s voter ID law, same-sex marriage ban and how each of them, as Democrats, would be able to work with a Republican governor if incumbent Scott Walker is re-elected.

Susan Happ, the only woman in the race and the Jefferson County district attorney, said she’d rather work with Walker’s Democratic challenger Mary Burke. But, she said she has had lots of experience working with people whom she disagrees with. She is the first Democratic district attorney elected in Republican-leaning Jefferson County since the 1930s.

“I am a Democrat in a Republican county. All my constitutional officers in my courthouse are Republicans. Public safety is not a partisan issue,” she said. “I’ve worked together with my Republican sheriff to save my taxpayers over a quarter of a million dollars so we know that we can no longer refuse to sit down at the table with people because we have different ideological views.”

Happ said that part of her record makes her more likely than her opponents to win in November if she wins the primary next week. She is an outspoken defender of women’s reproductive rights and gay marriage. And like her two opponents, Happ said she wouldn’t defend the state’s gay marriage ban or the voter ID law — both of which have been struck down in federal district court and are now before the federal appeals court.

Not surprising, Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne said he thinks he’s the better choice to become attorney general. He said he’s the only candidate in the race who has helped lead a statewide agency. He served two years as assistant secretary of the state Department of Corrections under former Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle.

Ozanne said he will defend laws that are constitutional, but he’ll use the attorney general’s office to speak out against ones that he disagrees with, like sending state inmates out of Wisconsin to relieve overcrowding.

“It is not the appropriate policy to strengthen our communities and our families. That said, if I was attorney general, I would have to defend that law because the state has the ability to contract for those services,” Ozanne said. “Now, as attorney general, I could talk what really makes our community safe and why that isn’t a god policy.”

Policies aside, state Rep. Jon Richards, D-Milwaukee, is the candidate in the race who has raised the most money. Richards is also the one with the least experience as a prosecutor. He has spent 15 years in the Legislature passing laws that protect both public safety and civil rights.

“I’m the one with the longest track record of working on the variety of issues that are before the attorney general’s office today,” he said. “On consumer rights, on standing up for a woman’s right to choose, on voting rights , on marriage equality, on making sure we are protecting our environment. Those are all things I’ve been working on as a public official, and I think that’s what we need, and I think that’s how we win.”

Richards’ dominance in raising money and his base in solidly Democratic Milwaukee might give him an edge in the primary. He has run a more energetic statewide campaign than the other two contenders.

But Happ is running a close second in the money race and is working hard to win women’s vote.

Ozanne has raised the least money, but he’s touting his prominent role in challenging the controversial Act 10 that stripped public employees of their collective bargaining rights law in 2011. He is hoping that will gain him votes from those who were active in the recall elections against Walker and Republican legislators sparked by the court ruling upholding the law.

The winner of next Tuesday’s election will face Republican Brad Schimel, the Waukesha Country district attorney, who already has a larger campaign war chest than any of the three Democrats.