By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
A pair of candidates are fighting for the open Racine County Court Branch 4 seat, and both have run for the office before.
Mark Nielsen of Racine and Joseph Seifert of Raymond are the two options for the spot left open by John Jude, who announced last fall he was retiring.
Nielsen has garnered a great deal of support, earning endorsements from Racine County Circuit Court judges
Allan Torhorst, Timothy Boyle, Michael Piontek, Faye Flancher, Eugene Gaiorkiewicz, David Paulson, Charles Constantine and by Jude.
Gaiorkiewicz is also running for re-election, but running unopposed.
In the Racine County Bar Association poll released last week, Nielsen earned 103 votes, while Seifert earned three. Five answered that both candidates were equally qualified, and one person did not pick either candidate.
Nielsen is a judge in the Racine Municipal Court, and has been a lawyer at Schwartz, Tofte and Nielsen since 1982.
In his candidate biography, Nielsen said his 36 years of representing citizens in the state’s courtroom makes him a solid choice.
“I believe that as a circuit judge I can apply my training and experience to assist in the administration of justice for all Racine County citizens,” he wrote.
Seifert ran unsuccessfully for judge last year against Torhorst. He did not return a request for information, but has been a lawyer for about six years.
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Your headline is misleading. Although my opponent has chosen to solicit and publish endorsements, the few select people endorsing him do not control the majority of voters. As a candidate for Judge, I have refused to solicit endorsements. I believe that endorsements are akin to a legal bribe and prevent a future judge from being unbiased and fair to all parties. Imagine the judge having to decide between two parties, where one of the attorneys has endorsed the judge and the other attorney did not, or worse yet, endorsed his opponent. Even if the judge could be fair in this situation, the judge’s ruling will always be in question should he rule in favor of the attorney that endorsed him. Many attorneys and public officials support me in this race. I have not solicited their endorsements because I believe that using endorsements is unethical and does not serve the people of Racine County. I am committed to fairness and equal representation for all, and my opponent’s use of endorsements goes against this principle. The fact that my opponent has readily sought endorsements and I have not does not mean that he has “momentum” in the Racine Judge race. It does reinforce, however, his position as an “insider” and mine as an “outsider.”
The election is now over. I did not care to dignify Mister Seifert’s post by debating it. However things on the internet are forever, and I owe it to the individuals supporting my candidacy for judge to point out a few things.
First the vast majority of my endorsers are the judges of Racine County. Judges do not appear in front of one another and do not interfere with the operations of one another’s courts. The only incentive the judges have for endorsing is their concern for the well being of the justice system in this county. Obviously the only thing I can do to pay back such an endorsement is to live up to it by performing well as a judge.
Second, the only attorneys publicly endorsing me are judges. The poll of the bar is not an “endorsement.” It is simply a statement that by 103 to 3 the voters’ individual opinions are that I am better qualified to serve. The vote is anonymous – and it was effectively unanimous – so it is hard to see who he supposes I could favor over whom.
As to his feeling that he is an outsider, he is correct. Attorney Seifert practices in Milwaukee County and appears to have first moved into Racine County three years ago. In that time he has twice run for circuit judge and applied unsuccessfully to be appointed Racine County’s Clerk of Court. If he feels like an outsider it is probably because he is an outsider. As to his claim that he had she support of “many” attorneys, he got only two votes other than his own in the poll of the bar.
Finally, speaking as the immediate past Chair of the Supreme Court’s Ethics Committee for this county, I can only wish that Attorney Seifert would become familiar with the rules of ethics of the profession before speaking so carelessly.
Mr. Nielsen,
What if one of the judges who ‘endorsed’ you appeared in your courtroom?
Nielsen has won the election but instead of being grateful for his victory and moving on, he now behaves like a “sore winner” by attempting to paint me in a bad light and stating false facts. In reality, I have nothing in my history as colorful as Nielsen. During the campaign I could have brought up Nielsen’s drunk driving conviction or his other indiscretions, but in order to run a clean race, I chose not to. It is sad the Nielsen—after the election is over—chooses to make comments that can only be characterized as outright lies and then accuses me of not knowing the rules of ethics. I stand by my experience and dedication to Racine County, and I maintain my position that using the endorsement of sitting judges to elect another judge is improper. Nielsen’s actions as a Judge Elect are shameful and I can only suggest that instead of pointing the finger at me, he read the rules of ethics himself.