Lena Taylor

Nonpartisan

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 41

Tenure

2024 - Present

Term ends

2031

Years in position

2

Predecessor:Audrey Skwierawski

Prior offices:

Wisconsin State Senate District 4

Years in office: 2005 - 2024

Successor:Dora Drake (D)

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Wisconsin State Assembly

Years in office: 2003 - 2005

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Report an officeholder change

Elections and appointments

Last election

April 1, 2025

Appointed

January 30, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, 1990

Law

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, 1993

Personal

Profession

Columnist, Milwaukee Courier

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Instagram

Personal LinkedIn

Lena Taylor is a judge for Branch 41 of theMilwaukee County Circuit Court in Wisconsin. She assumed office on January 30, 2024. Her current term ends on August 1, 2031.

Taylor ran for re-election for the Branch 41 judge of theMilwaukee County Circuit Court in Wisconsin. She won in the general election onApril 1, 2025.

Biography

Taylor graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee with a B.A. in English in 1990. She went on to earn a law degree from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1993. She worked as an attorney in the Wisconsin Public Defender's office for a few years before opening her own law firm in 1996 called Taylor and Associates Law Office.

Taylor ran for Milwaukee County Executive in 2008 but was defeated byScott Walker.^[1]

Elections

2025

See also: Municipal elections in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin (2025)

General election

General election for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 41

IncumbentLena Taylor won election in the general election for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 41 on April 1, 2025.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lena Taylor (Nonpartisan)	97.7	195,351
		Other/Write-in votes	2.3	4,664

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	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 200,015
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

The primary election was canceled. IncumbentLena Taylor advanced from the primary for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 41.

Endorsements

2023

See also: City elections in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (2023)

General election

General election for Milwaukee Municipal Court

Molly Gena defeatedLena Taylor in the general election for Milwaukee Municipal Court on April 4, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Molly Gena (Nonpartisan)	51.1	50,626
		Lena Taylor (Nonpartisan)	48.4	47,904
		Other/Write-in votes	0.5	473

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	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 99,003
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

The primary election was canceled.Molly Gena andLena Taylor advanced from the primary for Milwaukee Municipal Court.

2022

Mayor of Milwaukee

See also: Mayoral election in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (2022)

General election

Special general election for Mayor of Milwaukee

IncumbentCavalier Johnson defeatedRobert Donovan in the special general election for Mayor of Milwaukee on April 5, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cavalier Johnson (Nonpartisan)	71.5	62,143
		Robert Donovan (Nonpartisan)	28.2	24,543
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	215

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 86,901
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Special nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Milwaukee

The following candidates ran in the special primary for Mayor of Milwaukee on February 15, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cavalier Johnson (Nonpartisan)	41.8	25,779
✔		Robert Donovan (Nonpartisan)	22.3	13,742
		Lena Taylor (Nonpartisan)	12.8	7,877
		Marina Dimitrijevic (Nonpartisan)	12.2	7,521
	Submit photo	Earnell Lucas (Nonpartisan)	9.5	5,886
	Submit photo	Michael Sampson (Nonpartisan)	0.8	514
	Submit photo	Ieshuh Griffin (Nonpartisan)	0.5	315
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	56

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	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 61,690
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Lieutenant Governor

See also: Wisconsin gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin

Sara Rodriguez defeatedRoger Roth in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sara Rodriguez (D)	51.7	1,358,774
		Roger Roth (R)	48.3	1,268,535

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	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,627,309
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin

Sara Rodriguez defeatedPeng Her andAngela Kennedy in the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin on August 9, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sara Rodriguez	76.4	354,260
		Peng Her	23.5	108,766
		Angela Kennedy (Write-in)	0.0	39
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	589

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 463,654
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Lena Taylor (D)
• David Bowen (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin on August 9, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Roger Roth	30.1	178,972
		Patrick Testin	18.4	109,374
		Cindy Werner	13.6	80,953
		Jonathan Wichmann	13.3	79,166
		Will Martin	9.2	54,790
		Kyle Yudes	5.4	32,051
		David Varnam	5.1	30,640
		David King	4.6	27,443
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	1,612

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 595,001
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Ben Voelkel (R)

2020

State Senate

See also: Wisconsin State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Wisconsin State Senate District 4

IncumbentLena Taylor won election in the general election for Wisconsin State Senate District 4 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lena Taylor (D)	98.3	62,405
		Other/Write-in votes	1.7	1,053

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	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 63,458
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Lance Allen (Independent)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Senate District 4

IncumbentLena Taylor advanced from the Democratic primary for Wisconsin State Senate District 4 on August 11, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lena Taylor	99.0	16,898
		Other/Write-in votes	1.0	174

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 17,072
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Brandon Jackson (D)

Mayor of Milwaukee

See also: Mayoral election in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (2020)

General election

General election for Mayor of Milwaukee

IncumbentTom Barrett defeatedLena Taylor in the general election for Mayor of Milwaukee on April 7, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tom Barrett (Nonpartisan)	62.5	57,492
		Lena Taylor (Nonpartisan)	36.5	33,572
		Other/Write-in votes	0.9	852

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 91,916
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Milwaukee

IncumbentTom Barrett andLena Taylor defeatedTony Zielinski andPaul Rasky in the primary for Mayor of Milwaukee on February 18, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tom Barrett (Nonpartisan)	50.0	33,151
✔		Lena Taylor (Nonpartisan)	30.7	20,347
		Tony Zielinski (Nonpartisan)	15.7	10,385
	Submit photo	Paul Rasky (Nonpartisan)	2.9	1,902
		Other/Write-in votes	0.8	509

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 66,294
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign finance

2016

See also:Wisconsin State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for theWisconsin State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 9, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.

IncumbentLena Taylor ran unopposed in the Wisconsin State Senate District 4 general election.^[2][3]

Wisconsin State Senate, District 4 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lena TaylorIncumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	62,099
Total Votes				62,099
Source:Wisconsin Elections Commission

IncumbentLena Taylor defeatedMandela Barnes in the Wisconsin State Senate District 4 Democratic primary.^[4][5]

Wisconsin State Senate, District 4 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lena TaylorIncumbent	60.64%	11,454
	Democratic	Mandela Barnes	39.36%	7,433
Total Votes				18,887

2012

Taylor won re-election in the2012 election forWisconsin State Senate, District 4. Taylor was unopposed in the August 14th primary election and defeatedDavid King (I) in the general election on November 6, 2012.^[6][7]

Wisconsin State Senate, District 4, General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Lena TaylorIncumbent	86.1%	64,064
	Independent	David D. King	13.6%	10,154
	-	Scattering	0.3%	208
Total Votes				74,426

2010

See also:Wisconsin State Senate elections, 2010

Taylor's seat was not up for election in 2010.

2008-State Senate

On November 4, 2008, Lena Taylor won re-election to theWisconsin State Senate, District 4. She ran unopposed.^[8]

Lena Taylor raised $233,854 for her campaign.^[9]

Wisconsin State Senate, District 4 (2008)
Candidates		Votes
Lena Taylor (D)		66,751

Endorsements

In 2008, Taylor’s endorsements included the following:^[10]

• The Democratic Party of Wisconsin
• Former senators Herb Kohl and Russ Feingold
• Citizen Action of Wisconsin
• The AFSCME Milwaukee District 48 Union

She endorsedBarack Obama in 2008.^[11]

2008-Milwaukee County Executive

Lena Taylor ran for Milwaukee County Executive during the 2008 Spring General Election againstScott Walker^[12]. Taylor was defeated on April 1, 2008.^[12]

Campaign themes

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also:Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Lena Taylor did not completeBallotpedia's 2025 Candidate Connection survey.

2023

Lena Taylor did not completeBallotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Mayor of Milwaukee

Lena Taylor did not completeBallotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Lieutenant Governor

Lena Taylor did not completeBallotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Lena Taylor did not completeBallotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf.Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at theFEC website. Clickhere for more on federal campaign finance law andhere for more on state campaign finance law.

Personal

Note: Pleasecontact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Taylor was born and raised inMilwaukee, Wisconsin.

State legislative tenure

Scorecards

See also:State legislative scorecards andState legislative scorecards in Wisconsin

Ascorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Wisconsin scorecards, email suggestions toeditor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according toBillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Committee assignments

2023-2024

Taylor was assigned to the following committees:

• Committee on Economic Development and Technical Colleges
• Committee on Insurance and Small Business
• Judiciary and Public Safety Committee
• Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties
• Tax Exemptions Committee

2021-2022

Taylor was assigned to the following committees:

• Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties
• Tax Exemptions Committee
• Agriculture and Tourism Committee
• Insurance, Licensing and Forestry Committee
• Judiciary and Public Safety Committee

2019-2020

Taylor was assigned to the following committees:

• Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties
• Judiciary and Public Safety Committee
• Insurance, Financial Services, Government Oversight and Courts Committee
• Utilities and Housing Committee

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Taylor served on the following committees:

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Taylor served on the following committees:

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Taylor served on the following committees:

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Taylor served on the following committees:

Issues

Education

Taylor entered the Senate declaring thateducation was her top priority^[18].

Mortgage regulations

Taylor was one of the main sponsors of the Mortgage Mediation Act and legislation which would increase communication and warnings regarding home foreclosures.^[19][20][21]

Judicial flexibility on license suspension

Taylor helped introduce a bill which would let individual judges decide whether or not to suspend a person's driver's license for being convicted of drugs.^[22][23]

Other information about Sen. Taylor's legislative and voting records can be found on theWisconsin Legislature website orProject Vote Smart.

Legislative walkout

Taylor and the 13 other Democratic senators participated in a legislative walkout on February 17, 2011, in opposition toAssembly Bill 11 - a Republican-sponsored bill aimed at limiting collective bargaining rights, compensation and fringe benefits of public employees.^[24] The Democratic departure left theSenate one vote shy of a quorum. Reports confirmed the senators fled to a hotel in Rockford, Illinois.^[25] State police were dispatched byGovernorScott Walker (R) to retrieve the senators, but were unable to cross state lines.^[26] The 14 state senators who left the state are being described as the "Badger 14" or "Fab 14."^[27][28]

On February 22, speaking from the basement of an Illinois hotel,Senate Minority LeaderMark Miller provided the minority response to Gov.Scott Walker, saying, "The governor has the tools at his disposal to put this issue to an end. As soon as he is willing to take a compromise, we will go back to work in an instant." Miller stated that the legislators payed for the trip themselves, and that no taxpayer money was spent.^[29]

Walker called on the Democratic senators to return to the state by March 1 in order to vote to restructure the state's debt. If they did not, he stated he may have to start cutting state jobs, saying:

"It’s not just a number, it’s not just a budget, it’s ultimately a real person with a real family, so I’m going to push that back as far as I can. We’ve got to have real numbers to balance the budget to avoid layoffs. My hope is those 14 state senators … realize that in the end, it’s much better off to avoid those cuts, it’s much better off to avoid the most dire consequences that will come if we don’t pass this bill."^[30]

The Democratic senators said they would not return until the governor was willing to compromise on the budget-repair bill.

Democrats threatened with arrest

Republicans passed a unanimous resolution on March 3 finding the missing legislators in contempt and threatening them with arrest. It gave them until 4 p.m. to return or the sergeant-at-arms was ordered to take "any and all necessary steps, with or without force, and with or without the assistance of law enforcement, by warrant or other legal process, as he may deem necessary in order to bring that senator to the Senate chambers."^[31]

The constitutionality of that resolution was unclear, however, as theWisconsin Constitution only allows for the arrest of legislators while in session if they are suspected of committing a felony, treason, or breach of the peace. Jim Palmer, executive director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, said the resolution was an "unreasonable abuse of police power."^[32]

Sen.Jon Erpenbach provided the Democratic response, stating, "All 14 of us remain in Illinois, very strong in our convictions. Issuing arrest warrants at 4 p.m. isn't going to solve the problem. This is a debate about protection of the middle class in Wisconsin; that is what the Republicans should be focusing on."^[31]

The move by Republicans came the day after they issued fines of $100 a day for not showing up at the Capitol, along with taking away parking spaces.^[33] The week before Republicans also passed a rule suspending direct-deposit of paychecks. Sen.Erpenbach found a way around this by granting power of attorney to two of his aides, giving them power to, among other things, pick up his paycheck. In the endSenate Majority LeaderScott Fitzgerald mailed the check to Erpenbach.^[34]

Meeting/possible compromises

On March 7, Democratic leader Sen.Mark Miller sent a letter to the governor and senate majority leader asking for a meeting near the Wisconsin-Illinois border to restart talks on the collective bargaining issue.^[35] Gov. Walker responded at a press conference, calling the letter "ridiculous," and saying that several meetings between the two sides have taken place, but that Miller has stood in the way of a compromise.^[36]

Sen.Chris Larson said, "Dems will return when collective bargaining is off the table. That could be soon based on the growing public opposition to the bill and therecall efforts against Republicans."^[37]

On March 8, the Governor's office released an email exchange dated March 6 between Eric Schutt, Walker's deputy chief of staff, and Democratic Senators Cullen and Jauch. The exchange discusses possible compromises on the bill, including allowing unions to bargain for wages beyond inflation rates, permitting collective-bargaining on certain economic issues, allowing public workers to collectively bargain workplace safety issues, and limiting collective bargaining agreements to 2 years or less.^[38]

Senate passes bill

2011 Wisconsin Senate Recalls
Senators Facing Recall
Robert Cowles •Alberta Darling •Sheila Harsdorf •Dave Hansen •Jim Holperin •Randy Hopper •Dan Kapanke •Luther Olsen •Robert Wirch
Other Recall Information
Recalls by Year •Recall Law in Wisconsin •Recall laws in other states •Recalls in Wisconsin •2011 Scott Walker Budget Repair Bill •Protests over Budget Repair Bill •Wisconsin Government Accountability Board •Recall timeline •Election Results

On March 9, theWisconsin State Senate approved Act 10, which included changes to the collective bargaining rights of public-sector workers. Republicans passed the bill by a vote of 18-1, with Sen.Dale Schultz (R) voting against it. Democrats, who had absented themselves in order to prevent the Senate from meeting its 20-member quorum, were not present to vote on the legislation.^[39]

On May 26, 2011, Dane County Court Judge Maryann Sumi issued a stay against the law on the grounds that the legislative process had violated the state's open meetings law. The state Departments of Justice and Department of Administration appealed the decision to theWisconsin Supreme Court. On June 14, the Wisconsin Supreme Court overruled the lower court's decision, stating it "exceeded its jurisdiction, invaded the legislature’s constitutional powers...and erred in enjoining the publication and further implementation of the act."^[39]

Recall campaigns

In the wake of events surrounding the bill, bothDemocratic and Republican senators were targeted by active recall campaigns. Recall sponsors filed signatures on petitions targeting 6 Republican state senators and 3 Democratic state senators. Challenges were filed in all 9 of those campaigns, and the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board approved the six campaigns against Republicans at meetings on May 23 and May 31, and approved the three campaigns against Democrats on June 8. Democrats held onto the 30th District seat on July 19. Republicans lost two seats in the August 9 recalls, but held onto four. Two incumbent Democrats successfully retained their seats on August 16.

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Footnotes

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