Elon Musk bet it all on a judicial election in Wisconsin. He just lost

With just a few hours to go until polls closed in Wisconsin, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, declared the Supreme Court election in the US state of 6 million could “determine the fate of Western civilisation”.

If that’s so, the result is a rejection of Musk’s vision for the Western world, with the Democrat-backed judge, Susan Crawford, winning fairly comfortably over her Trump/Musk/Republican-backed rival, Brad Schimel.

Billionaire Tesla chief Elon Musk at a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, two days before the judicial election.Credit: Bloomberg

Musk plunged more than $US20 million ($32 million) into this contest, fuelling the most expensive judicial election ever held. His name was synonymous with the Wisconsin campaign.

In doing so, US President Donald Trump’s billionaire sidekick put his image as a conservative rainmaker on the line – and he lost.

It is too soon to tell how much Musk’s profile has been diminished by this failure. But there can be no doubt his stocks are falling. And it was a mess of his own making.

As Ben Wikler, chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, said on the sidelines of a campaign event last week: “[Musk] is so far in that if he loses this race, if Brad Schimel loses, his perceived power is going to collapse … It will become clear that the fury he’s provoking is more powerful than the money that he can pour in to help his friends.”

Liberal judge Susan Crawford claims victory in Wisconsin on Tuesday night.Credit: AP

On Tuesday night (Wednesday AEDT), Musk’s millions showed their limitations. They could not buy the election for Schimel. Neither could Trump’s endorsement – despite Wisconsin backing him for president by a slim margin in November.

To be fair, Musk was not the only one spending big. Liberal mega-donor George Soros and billionaire Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker tipped in millions for Crawford. Altogether, the Democratic camp spent about $US40 million to the Republicans’ $US50 million, based on data from the Brennan Centre for Justice.

Why such interest in a state judicial contest? For one, the Wisconsin Supreme Court may redraw district boundaries ahead of the next midterm elections, potentially making two seats notionally Democratic.

“This election could decide who controls the United States House of Representatives, which then determines in large part how America is governed, and then the future of the world,” Musk said in a public broadcast on his social media platform, X.

“It’s one of those strange situations where a seemingly small election could determine the fate of Western civilisation. The fate of the world may rest on … a very significant situation in Wisconsin.”

A few hours later, on Fox News, Musk unloaded on Crawford and liberal judges in a Trumpian rant. “They’re trying to stop the will of the people through judicial trickery,” he complained.

“There is a huge problem with activists who are actually politicians in judges’ robes. These fake judges should be ashamed of themselves. They’re just pretending to be judges. They’re making the law instead of implementing the law. It’s wrong.”

He may have been overselling it, but the election was significant. For one, the Wisconsin Supreme Court is likely to rule on the legal status of abortion in that state. For 60-something sisters Nancy and Carol Rank, it was enough to motivate them to attend their first political rally last week, in the town of Kenosha on Lake Michigan.

They were moved by the experience of their niece, who was caught up in the legal uncertainty over abortion and related medical procedures after Roe v Wade was overturned in 2022.

Sisters Carol and Nancy Rank at a campaign event for Judge Susan Crawford in Kenosha, Wisconsin.Credit: Michael Koziol

“She was pregnant with twins, and she lost them both,” Carol said. Her niece needed a procedure known as a dilation and curettage.

“She went to the hospital and they sent her home. A day or two later, she’s bleeding out, and she has to call the ambulance to take her back to the hospital. I don’t know why they didn’t keep her in the hospital … She bled out at home. She passed out.”

Outside Wisconsin, the results will ripple through American politics. Democrats, who had already identified Musk as the weak link in the Trump administration’s chain for his slash-and-burn cuts to government services and departments, will be emboldened in their strategy.

Republicans, who have already faced a backlash over Musk’s activities from angry constituents at town hall meetings, will start to worry even more about the trust Trump has placed in his controversial lieutenant.

And everyone will learn: you can’t just buy an election.

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