West High School’s Civics Club hosted a debate between Dane County judicial candidates Ben Jones and Huma Ahsan.
On March 20, candidates for Dane County Circuit Court Branch 1 — appointed incumbent Jones and former chief justice and current immigration lawyer Ahsan — came to West High School for a debate moderated by students. Jones serves in the position after he was appointed by Gov. Tony Evers in May 2025 to fill in for now Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Susan Crawford. The two are set to face off in the general election on April 7.
Students who moderated the debate asked the candidates about their judicial philosophy, experience and qualifications for the position, their beliefs on sentencing, how they would act to serve those who are not adequately represented in court and how they would take accountability for any mistakes they may have made in their careers.
Jones and Ahsan generally share the same beliefs, and the two are running on very similar platforms.
Both are steadfast believers in the power of education, defending vulnerable populations, ensuring fair sentencing, impartiality of the law, and a restoration to the rule of law and its erosion under the Trump Administration.
The two differ in their beliefs about why they are suitable candidate for the position.
“The process for being appointed asks a lot of those questions: Do you reflect the kind of judge that the system needs? And focused on those three things that I mentioned in the debate, which are a commitment to public service; understanding the law, especially now with constitutional issues and separation of powers issues; and having the right demeanor, the right approach to decision making,” Jones said.
In being appointed by Gov. Evers to fill the role in the interim, he looked for judges who would defend the rule of law and the Constitution. In Gov. Evers’ assessment, he looked for a dedication to public service, a broad-based knowledge of the law and judges who are kind, Jones said.
Jones maintains that he is the right candidate to retain the seat because he was already assessed to serve in the position. To supplement his belief, he also points to the fact that he has now had the experience in the position for nearly a year and the endorsement of Crawford.
“I’ve been through fights big and small, and have done so successfully, applying the law in ways that are appropriate and strategic and so that came through in that appointment process,” Jones said. “The people I’ve worked with on the bench, Justice Crawford, as a believer, I have the right demeanor. My colleagues on the bench, retired judges who have said, ‘Yep, you’ve got what it takes.’”
Ahsan credits her larger experience within the judicial system as why she’s the right person for the job. She is over a decade older than Jones with a larger breadth of experience under her belt.
Notably, Ahsan has previously been Chief Justice of the Turtle Mountain Court of Appeals in North Dakota, legislative attorney with the Ho-Chunk Nation, deputy director of the Great Lakes Indian Law Center and currently is the founder and senior attorney of Madison Immigrant Law.
Jones has been a director of legislative and legal affairs with the Chippewa Valley Society for Human Resources Management, an attorney at Weld Riley S.C., an attorney and later chief legal counsel for the Department of Public Instruction and — where he currently sits — a judge.
“At the end of the day, Mr. Jones has represented the government. The government has its own interest,” Ahsan said. “When you come in as a defendant, you’re just there by yourself and you’re hoping the court system is fair.”
“They have 1,000 Mr. Jones, they have a police force, they have a Department of Justice, they have the governor’s office. All you have is you, and that is the difference, because I have represented those individuals,” Ahsan continued.
Ahsan believes that Jones is part of the system that has allowed the Trump Administration to do what it has. Jones noted that, as a mistake he made, he and many others gave too much leeway and did not take the Trump Administration as seriously as they should have.
“In the first administration, the mistake that was made by the [Department of Public Instruction], by myself and by all the other departments around the country is underestimating the degree to which the Trump Administration will go to upend social norms and challenge the rule of law,” Jones said.
He likened Trump’s first term to “Giving a Mouse a Cookie,” and that too many concessions were made to secure federal funding.
