Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Janet Protasiewicz beat conservative contender Dan Kelly in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, flipping the balance of the court in favor of liberals for the first time in 15 years.

Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz came out on top in the hotly contested election with 55.5% of the vote, while former state Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly got 44.5%, as the race was called by the Associated Press.

With that, Protasiewicz has won a 10-year term in office and delivered a major victory for liberals and progressives in the state.

On the campaign trail, she expressed support for abortion rights and called out Wisconsin's "rigged" congressional maps. She is expected to rule in favor of overturning the Wisconsin's 1849 near-total abortion ban and redrawing the state's heavily gerrymandered maps.

Donald Trump Trump ally says transition team ignoring rules is part of "hostile takeover"

Kelly, on the other hand, said he would not support reworking the Republican-drawn maps. He was also expected to uphold the anti-abortion law and has a track record of vocally opposing LGBTQ+ rights.

Protasiewicz and her supporters celebrated the big win during her election night watch party in Milwaukee.

"Our state is taking a step forward to a better and brighter future where our rights and freedoms will be protected," the justice-elect said in a speech, according to NPR. "And while there is still work to be done, tonight we celebrate this historic victory that has obviously reignited hope in so many of us."

The Wisconsin Democratic Party also issued a statement, saying, "They thought they could break democracy in Wisconsin so completely that they could rip away basic rights from half the population. The voter uprising that delivered the Supreme Court victory for Janet Protasiewicz proved them wrong. The resurrection of democracy and freedom in Wisconsin has begun."

The race was the most expensive state supreme court contest in US history, with WisPolitics reporting total spending at over $45 million.