Daniel Bice
Deep-pocketed donors are writing six- and seven-figure checks for liberal Dane County Judge Susan Crawford and conservative Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel. The winner of the April 1 contest will determine the Supreme Court's ideological direction.
Leading the way is Elon Musk, the wealthiest individual in the world.
So far, he has dropped $19.3 million in support of Schimel, according to state campaign records.
That includes $3 million that he has given to the state Republican Party, including a $2 million gift late last week. Under state election laws, big-dollar donations have to go to the parties, which then transfer the cash to a state candidate.
In addition to his party donations, Musk's super PAC, America PAC, has spent $11.5 million on digital advertising, mailers, texts, field operations and voter turnout. The Musk-funded political nonprofit Building America's Future has also paid out nearly $4.8 million on TV ads attacking Crawford.
Candidates and outside groups are updating their fundraising totals frequently as the election nears, so many of the totals are likely to increase in the coming days.
Last week, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson said Musk will deserve the credit if Schimel comes out on top.
"If we do win it, again, we have to thank Elon for all the support he's given this race," the Wisconsin Republican said in a live, half-hour discussion on the social media platform X, which the tech billionaire owns.
At the same time, Democrats have tried to make the contest a referendum on Musk, whose popularity has plunged since he began slicing the size of the federal government as head of President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. A recent Marquette Law School poll found Musk is viewed favorably by 41% of registered voters in Wisconsin and unfavorably by 53%.
Ben Wikler, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said in a Tuesday statement that Musk has made Schimel "his latest pawn" in his effort to amass unchecked power.
“Brad Schimel made a bad bet with Elon Musk. Across this state, the voters Brad Schimel needs are learning how he’s crawled around on his kneepads begging for cash from the world’s richest man," Wikler said, referring to Schimel's earlier joke that he was burning through kneepads while asking so many people for support and money. "It’s a bad look.”
Others giving big bucks to the state GOP to help out Schimel include Beloit businesswoman Diane Hendricks ($3.1 million); Uline co-founders Elizabeth Uihlein ($2.2 million) and Richard Uihlein ($1.6 million); and former TD Ameritrade CEO Joe Ricketts ($500,000).
Richard Uihlein, whose packaging business is based in Pleasant Prairie, has also given a little more than $4 million to Fair Courts America, making him the only supporter of the super PAC. The group has spent all of those funds on TV commercials criticizing Crawford's sentencing practices.
Overall, Schimel, a former Republican attorney general, has raised nearly $14.3 million since getting into the race in December 2023. Of that, Schimel has received about $8.8 million from the state GOP.
Crawford pulls in cash from George Soros, JB Pritzker
By contrast, Crawford has taken in almost twice that of her opponent, raising a record $26.6 million for the hotly contested election, the most ever in a judicial race in the U.S. (But conservative outside groups have raised more than liberal ones in the race, as indicated by the TV buys in the contest.)
Among her biggest donors are liberal megadonor George Soros ($2 million); Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker ($1.5 million); Milwaukee progressive Lynde Uihlein ($740,000); and Tulsa billionaires and philanthropists Lynn Schusterman ($500,000) and Stacy Schusterman ($500,000).
Records show that of Crawford's total take, $10.4 million has come from the state Democratic Party.
In announcing her fundraising haul, Crawford contrasted her support with Musk's role in the race.
“I’m grateful for the historic outpouring of grassroots support across Wisconsin from folks who don’t want Elon Musk controlling our Supreme Court," she said in a statement.
But Jacob Fischer, a spokesman for Schimel, said Crawford's latest report shows that 80% of her donors are from outside the state. He said this shows she is running "purely for the interests of national Democrats."
"She hypocritically plays the victim while receiving more money than any judicial candidate in American history, thanks to George Soros, Reid Hoffman, and JB Pritzker funneling money to her campaign," Fischer concluded.
Contact Daniel Bice at (414) 313-6684 or dbice@jrn.com. Follow him on X at @DanielBice or on Facebook at fb.me/daniel.bice.
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