Elon Musk dropped a whole lot of cash into the Wisconsin Supreme Court race — and still lost. The candidate he backed, Brad Schimel, ended up losing to Susan Crawford, a Democrat-supported judge who now tips the balance of the court to a 4–3 liberal majority.
The Associated Press called the race for Crawford on Tuesday, April 2, at 10:16 p.m. ET.
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Musk put his money behind Brad Schimel
Musk funneled more than $20 million into Schimel’s campaign and threw in millions more for this flashy petition giveaway thing, hoping to hype up the election. But even with all that, Schimel didn’t win.
This election was a way bigger deal than usual
Usually these kinds of elections don’t get much buzz, but this one? People all over were watching. Wisconsin’s a swing state, and whoever won was gonna shape how the court leaned — liberal or conservative.
It also ended up being kind of a test to see if Trump and Musk could really move the needle in these smaller, lower-profile races.
Musk’s spending spree was off the charts
So yeah — Musk shelled out $22 million directly through America PAC, which he set up back in 2024 to help out Trump. On top of that, he funded a big giveaway campaign that tried to get people to sign a petition targeting so-called “activist judges.” That’s Musk’s go-to way of calling out liberal judges.
He offered $100 to anyone who signed the petition, and even threw in $1 million checks for three folks. People who signed up to be campaign “captains” could make $20 for each Wisconsinite they got to sign.
When you add it all up, Musk’s tab hit at least $25 million — probably more once all the bills come in. That made this the most expensive state supreme court election ever. Musk’s money alone made up over a quarter of the total $90 million spent.
Crawford’s campaign had some sharp words
Before the results even dropped, Derrick Honeyman, who speaks for Crawford’s campaign, didn’t hold back:
“We’ve always known Brad Schimel is a bad candidate—he wants to take Wisconsin back to 1849 with an extreme abortion ban.”
“But it turns out that Schimel is such a bad candidate that Elon Musk will spend whatever it takes to prop up Schimel’s failing campaign in a corrupt attempt to buy influence on the Supreme Court for his company’s lawsuit. It’s corrupt, it’s extreme, and it’s disgraceful to our state and judiciary.”
Crawford wins and flips the story
Crawford won the seat, which keeps the liberals in control of the court. She’s a circuit judge from Dane County and will now serve a full 10-year term. Her win was a surprise to a lot of people — especially with Musk spending millions to stop her.
This was the first major election in a swing state since Trump’s second term started, and it became a national thing. Trump had backed Schimel toward the end, and Musk really threw himself into it — posting a bunch on X, showing up in Wisconsin, and dropping serious money.
Democrats jumped on Musk as the villain in this race. They said he was trying to cut government jobs and use his money to take over the court for his own gain.
“As a little girl growing up in Chippewa Falls, I never could have imagined that I’d be taking on the richest man in the world for justice in Wisconsin,” Crawford told supporters Tuesday night. “And we won.”
Schimel gave a quick concession
Schimel kept it short after losing:
“I knew I had to put my all in,” but said, “you gotta accept the results.”
Major issues are headed to this court
Now that liberals still have the 4–3 majority, this court is about to take on some huge stuff. Think abortion rights, union protections, and redistricting battles. Crawford’s seat could play a big role in how all that goes.
Musk’s money didn’t outdo the Democrats
Even though Musk and his allies spent over $15 million, Democrats still had a slight edge in ad spending. They went hard on Musk, calling him out for trying to “buy” Schimel’s seat. Crawford used Musk as a punching bag at her campaign events too.
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin even ran a tour called “People v. Musk,” with big names like Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz joining in.
Oh, and some folks mentioned that Musk’s car company, Tesla, has a lawsuit in Wisconsin about a law banning carmakers from owning dealerships. That case might even end up in front of the court Crawford just joined.
Dems made this race about more than just Schimel
Democrats were all over Musk’s petition giveaway. State Attorney General Josh Kaul even tried — but failed — to stop Musk from handing out $1 million checks to folks promoting the petition at a Sunday rally.
On the flip side, the left didn’t bring up Trump too much. Schimel leaned into Trump pretty hard near the end, probably trying to fire up conservative voters. He went to events with Trump Jr. and told Turning Point USA canvassers that Trump needed a “support network” to fight lawsuits.
Both sides accused each other of being soft on crime. Crawford also hit Schimel with ads about how he handled thousands of untested rape kits when he was attorney general.
Abortion was another big topic. Liberals focused on Crawford’s support for abortion rights. The court is already looking at a couple of cases about the 1849 abortion ban, and it might rule to overturn it — though likely before Crawford officially joins in August.
There’s also a Planned Parenthood case asking if the state constitution protects abortion rights, which the court Crawford’s joining could end up hearing.
More cases and elections are coming
The court will probably take up a challenge to Act 10, the law from Scott Walker’s time that took away collective bargaining from most public workers. And redistricting? That could be on the table too.
Last year, the court struck down gerrymandered legislative maps. Republicans are worried congressional map challenges could be next — and some of the ads supporting Schimel pushed that fear hard.
The liberals only got control of the court in 2023 for the first time in 15 years. That slim majority was up for grabs again because Justice Ann Walsh Bradley announced she was stepping down. Now, elections are set every year from 2026 to 2030.
Other races on the Wisconsin ballot
There was also a race for school superintendent. Jill Underly, the incumbent backed by Democrats, beat Brittany Kinser, who was supported by conservative groups. Musk’s role in cutting down federal agencies popped up here too — especially after Trump signed an order to take apart the Department of Education.
And voters in Wisconsin approved a constitutional amendment to lock in the state’s voter ID law. That law’s been around since 2011, but now it’s officially part of the constitution. Conservatives said they wanted to make it harder for courts to get rid of the law, and hoped it would boost turnout for the court race too.
