Former Planned Parenthood director elected to Wisconsin Supreme Court

Judge Chris Taylor, who worked for Planned Parenthood as an attorney and a public policy director, was elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in early April.

Key Takeaways:

• Judge Chris Taylor announced last May that she was running for the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

• She won that election in early April, expanding liberal judges' majority to 5-2.

• Though she previously worked as attorney and public policy director for Planned Parenthood, she has implied she might not recuse herself from cases related to the abortion giant.

• She takes her seat on the court on August 1 for a 10-year term.

The Details:

Taylor's win over conservative Appeals Judge Maria Lazar will expand liberal judges' majority to 5-2, "effectively securing their ideological advantage until at least 2030," reported Wisconsin Public Radio. "In recent years, the high court has handed down major decisions expanding abortion rights and overturning Republican-drawn legislative maps, and is expected to weigh in on important voting rights and labor cases."

Taylor, an appeals court judge, spent her career as a private attorney, judge, state legislator, and also as a public policy director for the nation's largest abortion business. In May 2025, she announced she was running for justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and implied that she might not recuse herself from Planned Parenthood-related or abortion-related cases.

“I worked for Planned Parenthood 15 years ago. You usually do not see judges recuse themselves because they worked for a law firm that had an attorney appear before them,” Taylor said. “But it’s on a case-by-case basis. I take it seriously.”

"Some of the biggest cheers of the night came when Taylor mentioned her previous job at Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin," reported Wisconsin Public Radio after Taylor's win.

Planned Parenthood also celebrated; Tanya Atkinson, president of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin (PPAWI), said, "Wisconsin voters believe in fairness, freedom, and a justice system that works for everyone. They elected a justice who brings those values to the bench and understands what’s at stake for people across our state.”

She added, "Wisconsin’s highest court now includes one of our community’s most thoughtful legal minds. Justice-elect Taylor understands that our freedoms — including the ability to make our own health care decisions — must be protected. And we know that is a perspective critical to the State Supreme Court.”

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Devin Remiker said Taylor's win has "secured a pro-freedom, pro-democracy majority on the Court through 2030."

The Bottom Line:

Previously, Taylor told WPR, "... as a judge, what I do every single day is look at the facts of the case and apply the law in the most fair way possible." However, she was also clear, "My values are that women and families should have the ability to make their most personal, private health care decisions."

That terminology is commonly used by pro-abortion enthusiasts, but induced abortion — the direct and intentional killing of preborn babies — is not medically necessary and is not health care. The "freedom" to kill innocent, defenseless human beings isn't freedom at all.

In addition, as Wisconsin Public Radio reported, "Although Wisconsin’s Supreme Court is officially nonpartisan, the justices’ ideological approach is no secret, in practice or on the campaign trail. In Taylor’s case, her politics were well known, having previously served as a Democratic member of the state Assembly."

Taylor will take her seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court on August 1.