Huma for Judge / Ben Jones for Judge
Huma Ahsan, left, and Ben Jones.
Incumbent Dane County Judge Ben Jones, right, and immigration attorney Huma Ahsan, the top two vote-getters in the February primary, will face off April 7.
Immigration attorney Huma Ahsan trailed incumbent Ben Jones by 18 points in Tuesday's primary for Dane County Circuit Court’s Branch 1, but she says her campaign will make up the difference by the April 7 general election with old-fashioned grassroots campaigning.
"We are the Mamdani of this whole campaign," she says in an interview Tuesday night, referencing the recently elected mayor of New York City, who identifies as a democratic socialist. Ahsan notes that she would be the first Muslim-American judge in Wisconsin and one of the few Asian judges. “I think it would be pretty historic if I win, and again, it shows the people that they have choices.”
Adds Ahsan: “So much of our court system, particularly in Dane County, has been controlled by the powerful and the elite.”
Jones garnered 53% of the vote; Ahsan, founder of Madison Immigration Law and former chief justice of the Turtle Mountain appeals court, came in second with 35%.
Nathan Wagner, a family law and business attorney, received 12% of the vote and will not appear on the April ballot.
“It's going to be a lot of personal contacts, trying to get out and meet as many voters as I can, make sure they know who I am and what I stand for,” Jones says of his plans for April in an interview Tuesday night. “Nothing about my message changes. I'm as fair, as impartial as I was before tonight, as I'm going to be tomorrow.”
Evers appointed Jones, a University of Wisconsin Law School graduate and former Department of Public Instruction legal counsel, to the position after voters elected former Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford to the state Supreme Court. He took office July 31. Crawford has endorsed Jones and her political action committee contributed $5,000 to his campaign on Feb. 7. Jones has also received the backing of the majority of the Democratic establishment in Wisconsin, including former Gov. Jim Doyle. He also is endorsed by six Dane County judges.
Jones has contributed $102,000 to his campaign and had $51,493 on hand as of Feb. 9, according to a campaign finance report.
Ahsan, who graduated from Florida’s Stetson University College of Law, has contributed $18,790 to her campaign. She had $27,732 on hand as of Feb. 6. Ahsan has received endorsements from former Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Paul Higginbotham and current Dane County Circuit Court Judge Everett Mitchell, as well as multiple Dane County municipal officials.
Wisconsin circuit courts have original jurisdiction over most civil and criminal matters, such as divorces, assaults, and civil rights violations. They are the state’s sole trial court, meaning they are the only courts that receive evidence and testimony.
Counties are represented by at least one judge depending on their size, though some judges oversee multiple counties. Dane County has 17 judges; they are elected to six-year terms.
Madison Clerk Lydia McComas told Isthmus during a Feb. 7 test of election equipment that turnout wasn’t expected to be high — similarly-sized past primary elections, she said, have garnered around 10% citywide turnout, “so if we get above 10%, that’s wonderful.”
Unofficial turnout was 14% of preregistered voters, according to the city clerk’s office.
Three races for the Dane County Board of Supervisors were also trimmed down on Tuesday. Incumbent Supv. Tommy Rylander, who represents an area near the Dane County Regional Airport, received 51% of the vote, while Sean Burke, a former Madison city council candidate, received 25%. Otis Harris Jr., a life coach, received 11 votes fewer than Burke and will not advance.
Amy Larson, who was appointed interim supervisor on Jan. 27 to represent former Supv. April Kigeya’s Middleton and western Madison district, received 61.2%. Former Madison Ald. Nino Amato received 33.1%; Rick Cruz came in third with 5% of the vote.
Incumbent Supv. Michele Doolan, who represents a district that encompasses Mazomanie and Black Earth, received 73%; Nathan McGree, owner of the Tyrol Basin ski hill, received 12%. Cross Plains resident Aaron Linas received 11%.
The spring election will include the Dane County Circuit Court race, two Madison school board races, 13 Dane County board races, three city council races, and a state Supreme Court race.
[Editor's note: This article was updated to correct that the federal courts, not circuit courts, have jurisdiction over bankruptcies, and to note that there will be two Madison school board races on April 7.]
