Two Separate State-Level Judicial and Executive Power Developments

Two distinct state-level developments were reported: one involving New Hampshire's judiciary and one involving Wisconsin's executive-legislative power struggle. In New Hampshire, former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald resigned this week after having been on medical leave since July. His resignation followed findings by the state's Judicial Conduct Committee that he violated judicial canons, reportedly involving a payout to a longtime professional ally and a misleading public statement. Governor Kelly Ayotte said she was "extremely disappointed" by MacDonald's conduct and stated she has no timetable for naming his successor, according to New Hampshire Public Radio, the sole source for this event. Separately, in Wisconsin, the state Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling in a long-running dispute between Governor Tony Evers and the Republican-controlled Legislature over veto authority, as reported by PBS Wisconsin. The court struck down Evers' partial veto of a Republican-authored bill detailing literacy program spending. The justices also ruled that the Legislature may place funding for certain state programs into an emergency fund controlled by its budget committee, a practice Evers had challenged as unconstitutional. This ruling represented a legal victory for the Legislature in its broader contest with the governor over control of state spending decisions. Both matters remain in early stages of resolution with unresolved next steps. In New Hampshire, no successor to MacDonald has been named, and Ayotte has not indicated when a nomination process will begin; the precise details underlying the Judicial Conduct Committee's findings, including the nature of the payout and the misleading statement, were not fully specified in available reporting. In Wisconsin, the ruling's practical effects on future budget negotiations between Evers and the Legislature, including whether further legal or legislative action will follow, were not detailed in the available reporting. Each event is corroborated by only a single publisher in the supplied material, limiting independent verification of specific details.