Susan Crawford | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Crawford in 2025 | |
| Justice of theWisconsin Supreme Court | |
| Assumed office August 1, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Ann Walsh Bradley |
| Judge of theDane CountyCircuit Court Branch 1 | |
| In office August 1, 2018 – July 31, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Timothy Samuelson |
| Succeeded by | Ben Jones |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1965-03-01)March 1, 1965 (age 60) Lewiston, New York, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Lawrence University (BA) Indiana University, Bloomington (MA) University of Iowa (JD) |
| Website | Campaign website |
Susan Margaret Crawford (born March 1, 1965) is an American lawyer and jurist fromMadison, Wisconsin. She is a justice of theWisconsin Supreme Court, since taking office on August 1, 2025. She previously served seven years as aWisconsin circuit court judge inDane County (2018–2025).
Earlier in her career, she was chief legal counsel toWisconsin GovernorJim Doyle and served as administrator of the Office of Enforcement and Science in theWisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Before that, she had served as an assistant attorney general in theIowa Department of Justice and then theWisconsin Department of Justice; in both roles, she specialized in criminal appeals.
During the2025 election campaign, she was identified as aliberal candidate and received support fromDemocratic Party donors.[1] In her career as an attorney, she took on cases in support of labor unions, women's rights, voting rights, and public education.[2]
Crawford was raised inChippewa Falls, Wisconsin.[3] One of four children, her parents were originally fromMonroe, Wisconsin.[4]
She graduated fromChippewa Falls High School in 1983.[5] She went on to attendLawrence University inAppleton, Wisconsin, where she earned herbachelor's degree in 1987. She immediately continued her education atIndiana University, earning her master's degree in 1989. A short time later, she entered theUniversity of Iowa College of Law and obtained herJ.D. in 1994.[6] During her third year of law school, she was editor-in-chief of Transnational Law & Contemporary Problems, a law journal for students at Iowa.[7]
She was admitted to the bar in Iowa in early 1995, and took a job as an assistant attorney general in the Iowa Department of Justice. She worked in their criminalappeals division, based inDes Moines, and often litigated before theIowa Supreme Court.[8] Crawford was admitted to the Wisconsin Bar in 1997,[9] after which she became an assistant attorney general for theWisconsin Department of Justice where she worked as a prosecutor on hundreds of cases, and also held the title of director of the appellate unit (criminal appeals) under then-attorney general,Jim Doyle.[10][11]
After nearly a decade of service at the Wisconsin Department of Justice, she departed in 2007 and went on to work for a number of other state agencies during then-Governor Jim Doyle's second term, including the Department of Corrections andDepartment of Natural Resources. At the DNR she held the title of Administrator of the Division of Enforcement and Science[12] and oversaw the implementation of state stimulus funds from theAmerican Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 that saved many from unemployment during therecession of 2008.
She was selected by Governor Doyle to serve as his chief legal counsel in the governor's office in 2009.[13] As chief legal counsel she also served as chair of the governor's Pardon Advisory Board.
After Doyle left office, Crawford resumed her legal career with the Madison firmCullen Weston Pines & Bach, which later becamePines Bach LLP. The firm has a history of representing clients aligned with Democratic and left-leaning causes, often challenging Republican-backed legislation in Wisconsin.[14][15] Two years later, Crawford was named a partner in the law firm, with a practice focused on voting and workers' rights, notably representingPlanned Parenthood of Wisconsin, theLeague of Women Voters, the state SuperintendentTony Evers, and the Madison teachers' union.[16]
In 2018, Crawford made her first bid for elected office, running for an openWisconsin circuit court judgeship inDane County. In the election, she faced Marilyn Townsend, a municipal judge for the village ofShorewood Hills who had run unsuccessfully for another circuit judgeship the prior year.[17] Crawford was quickly endorsed by several of the other Dane County judges. In campaigning for the office, Crawford focused on her extensive experience with litigation and her past work in defense of unions, public education, and women's rights.[18] Crawford ultimately won the election by just 3,814 votes out of 114,875 cast.[19] She was unopposed for re-election in2024.[20]
In 2024,Wisconsin Supreme Court justiceAnn Walsh Bradley announced she would not run for re-election in2025. Wide speculation followed her announcement about which other state judges would jump into the race. Crawford announced her candidacy in June 2024 and was quickly endorsed by all four liberal justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, including the retiring Bradley.[21] Only one other candidate filed to run, eliminating the need for a primary. She faced former Republican state attorney generalBrad Schimel in the general election on April 1, 2025.
The election was the most expensive judicial race in United States history up to that time. Fundraising was a major topic in the campaign. In January 2025, Crawford's opponents accused her of being partisan for attending a briefing linked to Democratic donors.[22][23] Crawford received over one million dollars in campaign donations from billionaireGeorge Soros. Her opponent, on the other hand, received more than $25 million in campaign support from billionaire Republican donor and Trump administration officialElon Musk.[24] Two weeks before the election, campaign spending had already topped $76 million, exceeding $100 million by election day.[25][26]
Crawford's sentencing record was a major target for opposition PACs, specifically over a 2019 sexual assault where she sentenced the defendant to less than the prosecution's request. She sentenced the defendant to four years in prison with six years post-release supervision; the prosecution had requested ten years in prison.[27]
Crawford prevailed in the April 1 election, receiving roughly 55% of the vote. She took office on August 1, 2025.[28][29]
Crawford married Shawn F. Peters at Wingra Park in Madison on May 27, 2000.[30] They reside in Madison and have two adult children.[3] Over the past 20 years, Crawford has made small personal donations to the campaigns of other judicial candidates and Democratic politicians.[31]
| Year | Election | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | General[19] | Apr. 3 | Susan M. Crawford | Nonpartisan | 59,048 | 51.40% | Marilyn Townsend | Non. | 55,234 | 48.08% | 114,875 | 3,814 |
| 2024 | General[20] | Apr. 2 | Susan M. Crawford (inc) | Nonpartisan | 89,390 | 99.06% | --unopposed-- | 90,240 | 88,540 | |||
| Year | Election | Date | Elected | Defeated | Total | Plurality | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | General[32] | Apr. 1 | Susan Crawford | Nonpartisan | 1,301,137 | 55.02% | Brad Schimel | Non. | 1,062,330 | 44.92% | 2,364,887 | 238,807 |
| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Justice of theWisconsin Supreme Court 2025–present | Incumbent |
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