MADISON -- Wisconsin's most recent Supreme Court election last March-April fulfilled all expectations that it would be the record-breaker as predicted.

The non-partisan campaign-finance watchdog group Wisconsin Democracy Campaign (WDC) announced Monday that total ad spending on the race, which featured serial TV attack slots, hit $5.8 million. That's four times the previous record set in 1999.

The eventual winner, conservative judge Annette Ziegler, broke an individual candidate spending record from all sources with $1.45 million. The previous was $1.36 million, also in 1999.

Wisconsin's voters had plenty of warning that the election, in which Ziegler trounced liberal trial attorney Linda Clifford, would set the registers ringing. WDC warned just days after the ballots were counted that campaign spending was likely over $6 million, LNL reported.

The candidates themselves (three including also-ran Joe Sommers) spent $2.71 million on the race while outside interest grops spent $3.1 million, WDC reported. Most of the latter sponsored "phony issue ads," its press release stated.

Conservative-leaning Club for Growth, which backed Ziegler, and liberal-leaning Greater Wisconsin Committee, which supported Clifford, each spent about $400,000 on "negative issue ads," WDC added.

Ziegler, who defeated Clifford 58-42 last November, has since faced ethics charges related to non-recusals when she was a lower-court judge, LNL reported in May. She settled charges against her with the state Ethics Board for a $12,000 payment.

Ziegler will succeed retiring Justice Jon P. Wilcox on the Supreme Court next month.

The election campaign's ad bill and distaste at some of its TV advertising has prompted renewed calls for public funding of Wisconsin's judicial elections.