Human Rights Campaign Endorses Judge Janet Protasiewicz for the Wisconsin Supreme Court and Jodi Habush Sinykin for State Senate District 8

by HRC Staff •

Madison, Wisconsin – Today, the Human Rights Campaign PAC (HRC PAC) announced its endorsement of pro-equality candidates Judge Janet Protasiewicz for Wisconsin Supreme Court and Jodi Habush Sinykin for State Senate District 8 in the northern suburbs of Milwaukee.

HRC PAC is committed to engaging our volunteers, members and supporters to mobilize the nearly 715,000 Equality Voters in Wisconsin in support of pro-equality candidates. Equality Voters are a voting bloc of demographically and geographically diverse Americans who are united by the advancement of LGBTQ+ equality and will be critical in determining the outcome of the election in Wisconsin on April 4.

This critical election will decide the makeup of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which will determine cases on pressing issues including LGBTQ+, voting, and abortion rights. Janet Protasiewicz, a circuit court judge in Milwaukee, is the pro-equality candidate in this race. If elected, she would swing the state supreme court from an anti-equality majority to a pro-equality majority. Protasiewicz has vowed to be a justice who protects the right to privacy, defends democracy, and restores confidence in judges.

Jodi Habush Sinykin is an attorney and a pro-equality candidate who would vote to ban conversion therapy and expand Wisconsin’s non-discrimination protections to include gender identity. Her victory is critical to ensure anti-equality legislators do not gain a two-third majority – which would give them enough votes to override vetoes by pro-equality Governor Evers.

“The Human Rights Campaign is proud to endorse Judge Janet Protasiewicz for Wisconsin Supreme Court and Jodi Habush Sinykin for State Senate District 8. The outcome of this election will not only decide the makeup of the Supreme Court, but also determine if pro-equality candidates can stop discriminatory anti-LGBTQ+ bills from becoming law. We have a long history of fighting for LGBTQ+ equality here in Wisconsin and our work continues with this election in April. Equality Voters showed up in November and delivered important victories in Wisconsin, and we need to make our voices heard once again for candidates who will protect LGBTQ+ people and deliver on our nation’s founding promise of equality for all.”

Wendy Strout, Human Rights Campaign Wisconsin State Director

“I am honored to be endorsed by the Human Rights Campaign, which has been at the forefront of the fight for fairness and equality. The stakes of this election are high and we need a Supreme Court that upholds the constitutional rights of every Wisconsinite. I believe that we all deserve to live in a state where the law protects everyone equally – that’s why I’m running and what I’ll deliver. I am proud to have earned the support of so many leaders, organizations, and thousands of Wisconsinites in every corner of the state who want to bring common sense back to the court.”

Judge Janet Protasiewicz

“I am honored to receive the endorsement of the Human Rights Campaign, an organization I have long admired and respected for their important work advocating for our LGBTQ+ friends and family members here in Wisconsin. In these divisive times, I am proud to have the support of the advocates at the Human Rights Campaign, who are working every day to make our state a friendlier and more accepting place to call home. I look forward to standing up for the protection and respect of Wisconsin’s LGBTQ+ community as the 8th District’s next State Senator.”

Jodi Habush Sinykin

Protasiewicz’s opponent, Dan Kelly – a Trump-endorsed former supreme court justice who was defeated in 2020 – is anti-equality, anti-choice, and anti-democracy. In 2016, Kelly applied for a vacancy on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, criticizing same-sex marriage in his application and saying that supporting same-sex marriage “will eventually rob the institution of marriage of any discernible meaning.” Kelly has been endorsed by Wisconsin Right to Life, Pro-Life Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Family Action and is funded by the Uihlein family, an anti-LGBTQ+ megadonor.

Habush Sinykin’s opponent, Rep. Dan Knodl, is an anti-LGBTQ+ member of the state assembly. In the 2020-2021 session, he voted for AB 196, a transgender sports ban for high school students. He also co-authored AB 195, a transgender sports ban for college students. Knodl co-sponsored AB 963 and SB 915, which banned some types of gender-affirming care for minors.

HRC’s Commitment to Wisconsin

HRC has had staff and resources on the ground in Wisconsin since 2017. Across the country, HRC PAC works every day to elect pro-equality leaders who support policies that will support the rights and lives of LGBTQ+ people. HRC’s team on the ground in Wisconsin has consistently worked to mobilize our members, supporters, and Equality Voters to elect pro-LGBTQ+ candidates up and down the ballot.

Paid for by Human Rights Campaign PAC (www.hrc.org) and authorized by Janet for Justice and Jodi for State Senate. Not authorized by any federal candidate or candidate’s committee.

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