Susan Crawford has received a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Courtroom, NBC Information tasks, permitting liberals to take care of their slender majority on the battleground state’s highest court docket — and defying Elon Musk after he spent thousands and thousands of {dollars} to oppose her.
Crawford, a Dane County circuit decide who was backed by Democrats, secured a 10-year time period on the court docket over Brad Schimel, a Waukesha County circuit decide and a former Republican legal professional normal. As the primary main battleground state election of President Donald Trump’s second time period, the technically nonpartisan contest drew nationwide consideration and have become the costliest state Supreme Courtroom race in U.S. historical past.
The result is a setback for Trump and his billionaire adviser, Musk. Trump endorsed Schimel within the closing stretch of the race, whereas Musk injected himself into the middle of it, spending large sums of cash, visiting Wisconsin days out from Election Day and continuously posting concerning the race on his X feed. In flip, Democrats and progressive teams made Musk their major villain, attacking his affect on the race and his efforts to slash federal jobs and the federal government by way of the Division of Authorities Effectivity.
“As a bit of woman rising up in Chippewa Falls, I by no means may have imagined that I’d be taking over the richest man on this planet for justice in Wisconsin,” Crawford advised supporters Tuesday evening. “And we received.”
In a short concession speech, Schimel mentioned, “I knew I needed to put my all in,” however that “you gotta settle for the outcomes.”
Crawford’s victory additionally means liberals will preserve a 4-3 benefit on the court docket for no less than one other yr heading right into a time period when it may determine circumstances about abortion rights, unions and collective bargaining rights, and congressional maps and redistricting.
Regardless of the greater than $15 million that Musk and teams affiliated with him dropped into the race, Democrats total held a slender advert spending benefit, in line with AdImpact.
Democratic-aligned teams spent thousands and thousands of {dollars} blasting Musk as “attempting to purchase” Schimel and the election, whereas Crawford herself repeatedly used Musk as a foil at her marketing campaign occasions. The Democratic Celebration of Wisconsin launched a town-hall tour dubbed “Individuals v. Musk,” on which surrogates together with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz additional bashed Musk and DOGE.
Some additionally identified that Musk’s electrical automotive firm, Tesla, sued in Wisconsin this yr difficult a state legislation banning carmakers from proudly owning dealerships. The case may find yourself earlier than the state Supreme Courtroom.
Democrats additionally attacked Musk’s supply of $100 to Wisconsin voters to signal a petition to oppose “activist judges.” The Democratic state legal professional normal, Josh Kaul, additionally unsuccessfully tried to dam Musk from giving $1 million to individuals to be “spokesmen” for the petition at a rally Sunday.
Conversely, teams on the left largely stayed away from making the race about Trump, who narrowly carried the state in two of the previous three presidential elections.
The anti-Musk playbook is one which Democrats may search to duplicate in different elections this yr and within the 2026 midterms.
Schimel embraced Trump within the closing days of the race, a transfer strategists mentioned was supposed to attempt to juice conservative turnout.
Along with operating adverts touting Trump’s endorsement, Schimel appeared at a marketing campaign city corridor occasion in March with Donald Trump Jr. and advised a gaggle of canvassers from the conservative group Turning Level USA that Trump wants a “assist community” round him to assist him struggle the myriad fits his administration has confronted.
All sides tried to color its opponent as gentle on crime — though the state Supreme Courtroom hardly ever hears circumstances about sentencing — whereas Crawford additionally attacked Schimel in adverts that centered on allegations that the state Justice Division mishandled the upkeep of hundreds of rape kits beneath his watch as legal professional normal.
Other than Musk, teams on the left made Crawford’s assist of reproductive rights a central theme of their adverts and messaging. Abortion rights and the destiny of the state’s 1849 abortion ban have been sizzling matters due to a pair of circumstances already earlier than the court docket.
The state Supreme Courtroom heard a problem to the ban in November and is extensively anticipated to overturn the legislation, however earlier than Crawford is sworn in in August. Abortion suppliers within the state resumed the process in 2023 after a decide dominated that the 175-year-old legislation didn’t apply to consensual medical abortions, however the state Supreme Courtroom is reviewing whether or not to thoroughly invalidate it.
There’s additionally a separate case wherein Deliberate Parenthood has instantly requested the court docket to determine whether or not the state structure established a proper to an abortion. The court docket Crawford will sit on may hear that case.
As well as, the court docket can be prone to find yourself ruling on a case difficult landmark laws in the course of the administration of Republican Gov. Scott Walker that eradicated collective bargaining for many public staff, generally known as Act 10.
And the court docket may find yourself deciding circumstances difficult the state’s congressional maps, which favor Republicans.
After liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz joined the court docket in 2023, it overturned the state’s gerrymandered legislative maps. The court docket declined final yr to listen to a go well with that sought to redraw the congressional maps.
However many Republicans have expressed concern that related fits might be accepted sooner or later, pointing to an e-mail from a Democratic-aligned group that urged a Crawford victory would possibly “put two extra Home seats in play.” The subject, in addition to that e-mail, turned a theme in a number of the adverts run by Schimel-aligned outdoors teams.
Liberals received a majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Courtroom for the primary time in 15 years in 2023. The bulk was once more on the road this yr after liberal Justice Ann Walsh Bradley introduced her retirement. State Supreme Courtroom elections are additionally scheduled in Wisconsin annually from 2026 to 2030.
Additional down the Wisconsin poll
In the meantime, within the state’s nominally nonpartisan college superintendent race, incumbent Jill Underly, who was backed by the state Democratic Celebration, defeated Brittany Kinser, who had the backing of conservative teams, NBC Information tasks.
That race was additionally largely outlined by the function Musk has performed in downsizing the federal authorities, and the competition took on elevated significance within the weeks since Trump signed an govt order to dismantle the U.S. Schooling Division.
Wisconsin voters additionally permitted a proposed modification to enshrine an current voter ID legislation into the state structure, NBC Information tasks.
The measure will add language to the structure from a 2011 measure requiring voters to supply picture ID once they vote or request absentee ballots.
Conservatives mentioned they sought to enshrine the legislation within the state structure to make it tougher to strike down sooner or later. Republicans additionally hoped it could assist increase voter turnout for the state Supreme Courtroom race.
Adam Edelman
Adam Edelman is a politics reporter for NBC Information.