1979 Wisconsin Supreme Court election
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April 3, 1979
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 Abrahamson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Boyle: 50–60% | |||||||||||||
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| Elections in Wisconsin |
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The 1979 Wisconsin Supreme Court election was held on April 3, 1979, to elect a justice to the Wisconsin Supreme Court for a ten-year term. Incumbent justice Shirley Abrahamson (who had been appointed to fill a vacancy) won the election, defeating Howard H. Boyle Jr.
Background
[edit]On August 6, 1976, Governor Patrick Lucey appointed Shirley Abrahamson to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Horace W. Wilkie.[1][2]
The Constitution of Wisconsin stipulates that early elections full terms can be triggered by a vacancy. The constitution stipulates that it is impermissible for more than one seat to be up for election in the same year. Elections must be moved moved to an earlier year after a vacancy, but only if there is a more immediate year without a scheduled contest.[3] All supreme court elections are held during the spring elections in early April.[4] Since there were was no supreme court election scheduled in 1979, but there were elections scheduled in 1977 and 1978, the vacancy moved the election to the next possible date, 1979. This allowed Wilkie's successor to serve as justice for two years before they would be up for election.
Ahead of the election, the court had 3 conservatives, 3 liberals, and 1 swing vote. Abrahamson was a member of the court's liberal wing.[5]
Candidates
[edit]- Shirley Abrahamson, incumbent justice (appointed)
- Howard H. Boyle Jr., attorney; unsuccessful candidate for Supreme Court in 1964 and 1965; unsuccessful candidate for U.S. Senate in 1956 and 1957[6]
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Election, April 3, 1979 | |||||
| Nonpartisan | Shirley Abrahamson (incumbent) | 547,003 | 65.13 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Howard H. Boyle Jr. | 292,919 | 34.87 | ||
| Plurality | 254,084 | 30.25 | |||
| Total votes | 839,922 | 100 | |||
References
[edit]- ↑ "Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson". Wisconsin Court System. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
- ↑ Simms, Patricia (August 7, 1976). "Woman justice is a lawyer first". Wisconsin State Journal. p. 19. Retrieved December 20, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Wisconsin Question 2, Unified Court System Amendment (April 1977)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Portraits of Justice" (PDF). Wisconsin Courts. Wisconsin Historical Society Press. 2003. pp. IX, X, and 59. Retrieved March 27, 2025.
- ↑ Pommer, Matt (April 6, 1977). "Callow Tops Landry for Supreme Court". The Capital Times. p. 2. Retrieved April 16, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Multiple sources:
- Koehler, Michael (January 1, 2001). "Baseball, Apple Pie and Judicial Elections: An Analysis of the 1967 Wisconsin Supreme Court Race". Marquette Law Review. 85 (1): 223. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- "A Question of Judicial Ethics". The Post-Crescent. March 15, 1964. Retrieved July 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- Hanley, Daniel P. (March 11, 1964). "Boyle Second High In Vote For Justice". Tri-County Citizen. United Press International. pp. 1, 7.
- Hanley, Daniel P. (March 11, 1964). "Boyle Second High In Vote For Justice". Tri-County Citizen. United Press International. p. 1. Retrieved July 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- Hanley, Daniel P. (March 11, 1964). "Boyle Second". Tri-County Citizen. United Press International. p. 7. Retrieved July 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (1979). "Elections" (PDF). In Theobald, H. Rupert; Robbins, Patricia V. (eds.). The state of Wisconsin 1979-1980 Blue Book (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. p. 884. Retrieved December 20, 2020.