Trump framed the race, which has become a proxy referendum on the Trump administration’s agenda, as one with national stakes.

“I know you feel it’s local, but it’s not. It’s really much more than local,” Trump said in the 10-minute call. “The whole country’s watching.”

Trump endorsed Schimel last week. Former President Barack Obama voiced his support for Crawford this week.

During the call, Schimel claimed he would need 60% of the Wisconsin voters who turned out to vote for Trump last November to turn out for him to win.

“But we should shoot much higher than 60%,” Schimel said. “We should be shooting for all of President Trump’s voters to get out and vote for me in this election because if we don’t, the movement that is restoring America to its greatness will bypass our state.”

The election could shift the court’s ideological leaning from liberal to conservative. In 2023, Janet Protasiewicz’s victory gave Liberals their first majority on the state’s high court in 15 years. 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court race is already shaping up to become the most expensive in U.S. history after the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race earned that title. 

More than $81 million has been spent on the race so far. More than $17 million, or around 20% of that figure, was spent by groups funded by Trump’s billionaire adviser, Elon Musk.

Musk posted late Thursday night on his social media platform, X, that he plans to travel to Wisconsin Sunday and personally give $1 million each to two voters at the event. He said attendance would be limited only to those who have already voted in the election but did not explain how he would verify this.

Similar to a promise he made in the 2024 general election, he has pledged $100 to any registered Wisconsin voter who signed his petition for Schimel or forwarded it to someone who did.

His moves have raised questions about whether his petition violated a Wisconsin law that makes it a felony to offer, give, lend, or promise to lend or give anything of value to induce a voter to cast a ballot or not vote.

As of Thursday, 475,207 absentee ballots have been cast in the election so far, with 242,426 being in-person absentee ballots. That figure is up from the 175,774 that had voted early by the Thursday before the 2023 spring election, according to data from the Wisconsin Elections Commission. 

​​WISCONSIN VOTERS GEAR UP FOR ANOTHER HIGH-STAKES STATE SUPREME COURT RACE

The election is on Tuesday, April 1, which is four days away. Wisconsin voters will also decide on the state’s superintendent. 

The April ballot will also include a voter identification requirement question after the GOP-controlled Wisconsin state legislature passed a measure to place it. If successful, the measure would enshrine in the state constitution that an ID is required to vote. Wisconsin is already one of nine states with strict voter ID requirements.