President Donald Trump and Elon Musk put their financial and political muscle behind conservative candidate Brad Schimel, while former President Barack Obama, George Soros, and Gov. JB Pritzker (D-IL) opened their wallets for Dane County Judge Susan Crawford, a liberal.

What’s at stake is not only a seat on the state Supreme Court but also an opportunity to affect directly the national political landscape that could tip the balance of power in Congress. Whichever party is in power could either support or thwart Trump and Musk’s planned vision for America. 

In a normal year, a state judicial race wouldn’t receive much fanfare, if any. But this contest was turbocharged from the start by special interest groups and billionaires funneling over $90 million into it, making it the costliest of any state judicial race in U.S. history. 

“If you told me six months ago that this is what was going to happen, I would not have believed you,” Schimel told the Washington Examiner in Waukesha. “Some parts of this are way beyond my control anymore.”

Liberals hold a 4-3 advantage on the court, but the retirement of a liberal justice this year put the ideological balance in play. The court in battleground Wisconsin is expected to rule on abortion, congressional redistricting, in which Democrats could pick up two House seats, Act 10, which involves collective bargaining, and voting regulations, as well as a case involving Tesla, Musk’s electric vehicle company. 

“The upcoming Wisconsin Supreme Court election carries profound consequences for the rule of law, judicial integrity, and the constitutional balance of power in the state,” Tim Rosenberger, legal policy fellow at the Manhattan Institute, told the Washington Examiner. “With critical issues like election integrity, regulatory overreach, and the separation of powers hanging in the balance, Wisconsin voters have the opportunity to reaffirm the principle that courts exist to apply the law — not to rewrite it based on political whims.”

Rosenberger added that the election wasn’t about a single seat. 

“It is about the future trajectory of Wisconsin’s legal landscape and whether the court will uphold its role as an impartial arbiter or veer toward judicial activism,” he said. 

Musk’s backing of Schimel, the state’s former attorney general, has been one of the most divisive issues in the race. 

Musk’s America PAC spent millions to boost conservative turnout and offered $100 payments to voters who signed his America PAC petition. During an event in Green Bay on Sunday, Musk also handed out two $1 million checks to two people who had already voted in the election, and he referred to them as his new spokespeople since they signed his petition against activist judges. Wisconsin’s Democratic attorney general sued Musk over the payments, but hours before Musk took the stage, the state Supreme Court declined to hear the case. 

Musk has spent over $20 million to back Schimel, making him the single largest spender in the race. America PAC has spent over $6.6 million on the election. The group created a canvassing operation of more than 500 employees who have relentlessly knocked on doors in rural areas of the state and left-leaning Madison and Milwaukee. The canvassers were paid workers, making $25 an hour, three times more than Wisconsin’s minimum wage. The group has purportedly knocked on a million doors to push not only Schimel as a candidate but also Musk and Trump.

Other groups with a strong ground game for Schimel include Americans for Prosperity-Wisconsin. The group has spent nearly $3.5 million on the race and engaged with about 600,000 voters. Its layered approach includes door-knocking, mail, and purchasing ads statewide. Not only does the group believe in Schimel, but it is hypervigilant about protecting Trump’s agenda. 

Tuesday’s election is the president’s first test with swing-state voters following a busy few months in office. His administration has slashed thousands of federal jobs, shuttered hundreds of programs, and caused confusion over the future of everything from education to Social Security.

Musk, the face of the Department of Government Efficiency, has been behind unilateral efforts to gut federal agencies. He was mostly met with cheers during his Green Bay giveaway on Sunday, but outside, protesters had lined up, carrying signs in the freezing rain that read “Deport the Nazi,” “Deport Musk,” and “Wisconsin is not for sale.”

If Musk is successful in getting Schimel, who started out behind in the polls, elected, it will cement him as a conservative kingmaker, and his efforts in Wisconsin could become the blueprint for the midterm elections. If he fails, it would give Republicans license to distance themselves from him and some of his more controversial actions.

The Democratic strategy in the Wisconsin race has been to vilify Musk, tying him to Schimel and turning him into a bogeyman who is trying to buy the election and destroy democracy. 

“Let me talk about my opponent,” Crawford said Monday night at her last campaign stop at the Majestic Theatre in Madison. “You’ve heard of him. His name is Elon Musk.”

“This guy has spent over $25 million to try to take me off the Wisconsin Supreme Court. What’s he afraid of? He’s afraid of justice. But unfortunately, the guy whose name is on the ballot, Brad Schimel, he embraces that support. He said right when he launched this campaign that he was going to nationalize this race and bring in the conservative deep pockets from around the country to fund his campaign. After he came back from Washington, D.C., after he was there during the inauguration, attending the big fancy galas funded by the big conservative groups, he was bragging and laughing about being on his knees. … And then guess who showed up? Elon Musk. He’s buying, and Brad Schimel is selling.”

WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT CANDIDATE BRAD SCHIMEL MAKES PITCH TO MAGA AS LATE MOMENTUM GATHERS

Momentum for Tuesday’s race has shifted in recent days. At Crawford’s last rally, not as many people showed up as expected, with almost the entire balcony at the Majestic Theatre empty.

Schimel, though, has been picking up steam by bringing in Washington heavyweights to join him on the campaign trail. His strategy has been to get Trump’s Make America Great Again base to come out and vote for him. He told the Washington Examiner that if even 60% come out, he’s a shoo-in.