(NewsNation) — Voters are headed to the polls Tuesday in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. Some see the race as the first test of President Donald Trump’s first few weeks in office and Elon Musk’s political power. The trajectory of the race could influence campaign strategy for future elections.
The race is officially nonpartisan, but endorsements and funds from outside the state have pulled politics into the fray, with Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama offering endorsements and billionaires including Elon Musk, George Soros and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker donating to campaigns.
Wisconsin voters have been bombarded with attack ads. One mailer read, “Susan Crawford will destroy gun rights in Wisconsin.” Another claimed, “Elon Musk thinks Wisconsin Supreme Court is for sale.”
Americans across the country could feel the ripple effects from whoever wins the race, and it could also have major impacts for both political parties.
On Sunday, Musk handed out $1 million checks to two voters of his town hall in Wisconsin, casting it as critical to Trump’s agenda and “the future of civilization.” He declared the voters spokespeople for his political group, claiming the move was cheaper and more effective than paying for the same amount of media coverage.
Wisconsin Supreme Court race funding
Tens of millions of dollars have been funneled into the race. Musk and super PACs associated with him donated more than $17 million to support Brad Schimel, while Susan Crawford has megadonors that include Soros and Pritzker.
NewsNation asked both candidates about the outside influences in the race.
“Well, let me just clarify that the big difference is that Elon Musk has himself put over $18 million into this race,” Crawford said. “That is absolutely unprecedented.”
“I’m running to be a justice for Wisconsin, I’m not running for anything else,” Schimel said. “I don’t control what Elon Musk or anybody else does with their money or their organizations. My opponent, she’s raised $25 million. most of that from outside the state of Wisconsin.”
Schimel’s own war chest has raised in excess of $46 million, including contributions from Musk.
Wisconsin Supreme Court set to rule on key issues
Beyond campaign contributions, the bigger picture is how the judge’s future rulings could impact Wisconsin and then how that could shape a larger national trajectory.
Abortion and union organizing are already on the docket for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and so is the potential redistricting of the state’s maps. The winner of this race could way the court to order the redrawing of Congressional districts.
That could shift the balance of power on Capitol Hill.
With Trump and Musk throwing their weight behind Schimel, it could also show how their support could shape future elections.
After Biden’s 2020 win, Trump’s campaign filed numerous lawsuits in nine states, including Wisconsin, to contest the results. Most were dismissed due to lack of evidence or standing.
“The Wisconsin Supreme Court came closer than any other state court in the country to siding with the Trump campaign in their efforts to overturn the 2020 election,” said Dan Shafer, political editor with Civic Media and founder of The Recombobulation Area. “It took one of the four, then four conservative justices to side with the three liberals to reject the Trump campaign’s challenges, which would have thrown out hundreds of thousands of votes in Milwaukee and Madison in particular.”
Shafer, a veteran of Wisconsin politics, raised the question of what Schimel would’ve done if he had been on the court during Trump’s attempt to overturn the election. Had he sided with Trump, Wisconsin could have shifted from blue to red.
“The way he’s campaigning now, he’s just like, ‘yeah, I want to be Trump’s guy on the court.’ Well, what’s that going to mean if, if the election goes, you know, for a Democrat in the future, how is he going to rule on potential challenges the way that three other justices did right?”
Schimel has stated he would follow the law and make no promises.
Wisconsin is already a bellwether for the nation, having correctly picked the president for the past five general elections.
How this race shapes up could influence other races, with Democrats putting out attack ads against Musk. The strategy could be used in other races if it succeeds.