The 1949 Wisconsin Supreme Court election was held on Tuesday, May 3, 1949 to elect a justice to a full ten-year seat the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
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April 5, 1949 (first round)
May 3, 1949 (runoff) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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It was the only Wisconsin Supreme Court election held under rules that required a contingent runoff election if no candidate received an outright majority in an initial election.
Candidates
editThe election featured a field of twelve candidates on the ballot.[1]
Advanced to runoff election
edit- Edward J. Gehl, Washington County Circuit Court judge[2][3]
- Elmer D. Goodland, Racine Municipal Court judge[3]
Eliminated in first round
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- Thomas Ryum Amlie, former U.S. congressman (Wisconsin Progressive Party), candidate in the 1938 Progressive U.S. Senate primary, Democratic Party politician[2]
- J. Henry Bennett, lawyer, former member of the Wisconsin Senate (Republican), former member of the board of the Wisconsin Bar Association[2]
- William O. Hart, printer,[2] socialist activist, perennial candidate[4]
- Peter F. Leuch, lawyer, former member of the Wisconsin Assembly, former Milwaukee city clerk, unsuccessful candidate for Supreme Court in 1944[2] and 1945
- Mortimer Levitan, attorney; director and treasurer of Milwaukee Legal Aid Society; director of Madison Bank & Trust; former assistant attorney general; son of former state treasurer Solomon Levitan[2][5]
- Anthony E. Madler, former Wisconsin fuel administrator (1948), former legal council to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture (1940–1948), former Chilton city attorney[2]
- Earl J. O'Brien, lawyer, 1938 Republican nominee for Milwaukee County attorney[2]
- Marshall L. Peterson, lawyer, former Green County judge (1938–43), former assistant district attorney of Green County, former public administrator, U.S. Navy veteran of World War II[2]
- James Ward Rector, former justice (unseated in 1947), president of the Dane County Bar Association, counsel for the Wisconsin Public Service Commission[2]
- Harold E. Stafford, Chippewa Falls-based lawyer, U.S Army veteran of World War I,[2] unsuccessful candidate in the 1940 Progressive gubernatorial primary
Campaign
editFirst round
editRector was endorsed by the editorial board of the Wisconsin State Journal; while Amlie was endorsed by the editorial board of The Capital Times.[1]
In a March 21 piece, The Editorial Board of The Capital Times condemned the Wisconsin press by large of failing to provide voters with information about candidates in the broad fields running in the elections for Supreme Court and superintendent of public instruction.[1]
At a campaign event at the University of Wisconsin, Amlie quoted remarks made by the late Wisconsin chief justice Edward George Ryan in 1873 criticizing the influence of money in politics.[1]
Runoff election
editBecause no candidate secured more than 50% of the vote in the initial round, a runoff election was necessitated. The coinciding superintendent of public instruction election also advanced to a runoff.[6] This was under rules that were first enacted for this election, and which the state legislature would ultimately abandon later in 1949. Thus, 1949 is the only Wisconsin Supreme Court election to have been held with a contingent runoff.[7]
During the general election, Goodland took a policy position in opposition of proposals for Wisconsin to eliminate judicial elections and adopt the Missouri Plan method of judicial selection.[3]
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round (April 5, 1949)[8] | |||||
| Nonpartisan | Edward J. Gehl | 128,996 | 20.4 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Elmer D. Goodland | 98,569 | 15.6 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Harold Stafford | 69,237 | 10.9 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Thomas R. Amlie | 61,759 | 9.7 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Earl J. O'Brien | 52,716 | 8.3 | ||
| Nonpartisan | James Ward Rector | 51,589 | 8.1 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Mortimer Levitan | 48,807 | 7.7 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Marshall L. Peterson | 45,446 | 7.2 | ||
| Nonpartisan | J. Henry Bennett | 28,409 | 4.5 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Anthony E. Madler | 25,602 | 4.0 | ||
| Nonpartisan | William O. Hart | 12,574 | 2.0 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Peter F. Leuch | 9,802 | 1.5 | ||
| Total votes | 633,506 | 100 | |||
| Runoff election (May 5, 1949)[9] | |||||
| Nonpartisan | Edward J. Gehl | 94,692 | 52.4 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Elmer D. Goodland | 85,928 | 47.6 | ||
| Total votes | 180,620 | 100 | |||
References
edit- 1 2 3 4 "Hey Wisconsin; Do We Mean What We Say About Democracy?". The Capital Times. March 21, 1949. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "For The Supreme Court; The Candidates". The La Crosse Tribune. March 29, 1949. p. 6. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 "Goodland Opposes Plan to Deprive Voters of Right to Elect Judges". The Capital Times. April 28, 1949. p. 1. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "William Osborne Papers, 1943-1989". digicoll.library.wisc.edu. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
- ↑ "Candidate For Supreme Court Is Visitor In City". The Sheboygan Press. March 24, 1949. p. 25. Retrieved April 9, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "2 Win 'Runoff' In Wisconsin; Gehl Elected Judge; Watson School Chief". Star Tribune. The Associated Press. May 4, 1949. p. 21. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Portraits of Justice" (PDF). Wisconsin Courts. Wisconsin Historical Society Press. 2003. pp. IX. Retrieved March 27, 2025.
- ↑ "The Wisconsin Blue Book 1950". State of Wisconsin. 1950. p. 765. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via search.library.wisc.edu.
- ↑ "The Wisconsin Blue Book 1950". State of Wisconsin. 1950. p. 766. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via search.library.wisc.edu.