Elon Musk walked onto the stage in Green Bay wearing a giant yellow foam cheesehead. Seriously. The world’s richest man, the guy leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), stood there in a convention center looking like any other Packers fan on a Sunday afternoon. But the mood inside the KI Convention Center on March 30, 2025, was anything but casual. It was high-stakes political theater with millions of dollars—and the future of the Wisconsin Supreme Court—hanging in the balance.
Basically, this wasn't just another tech talk. Musk was there to save a seat. Specifically, the seat belonging to retiring Justice Ann Walsh Bradley.
The crowd of about 1,000 people was a mix of die-hard supporters, curious locals, and folks who really, really wanted a chance at a million bucks. You see, Musk didn't just bring his opinions to Wisconsin. He brought oversized checks. Two of them. Each worth $1 million.
The $2 Million Elephant in the Room
State Attorney General Josh Kaul tried to stop it. He sued. He called it "blatant election bribery." For a few hours, it looked like the whole thing might get shut down before it even started. But then, in a move that felt like a movie script, the Wisconsin Supreme Court—the very court they were fighting over—refused to hear the challenge just minutes before the rally kicked off.
Musk won that round.
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When he finally took the mic, he was blunt about why he was there. "We need to get attention," he told the audience. He admitted the checks were a stunt to make the legacy media "lose their minds." Honestly, it worked. Every major news outlet was tracking his plane.
He handed the checks to Nicholas Jacobs, the chair of the Wisconsin College Republicans, and Ekaterina Diestler, a graphic designer. They weren't just random winners; they were now "spokespeople" for his petition against activist judges.
Why a Judicial Race Matters to a Billionaire
You might be wondering why a guy who runs SpaceX and Tesla cares about a judge in Waukesha. It sounds small-time. It isn't. Musk laid it out clearly: "The House majority right now is razor thin."
He’s worried that a liberal-leaning court will redraw Wisconsin’s congressional maps. If that happens, Republicans could lose two seats in the U.S. House. In Musk's view, those two seats are the difference between his DOGE reforms succeeding or being blocked by "neo-Marxists in DC."
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He spoke for nearly an hour, touching on everything from "derangement on the left" to the 18,000 death threats his security team handles. It was vintage Musk—rambling, unfiltered, and intensely focused on what he calls the "destiny of humanity."
- The Goal: Electing conservative Judge Brad Schimel to flip the court.
- The Stakes: Abortion rights, redistricting, and union power.
- The Strategy: America PAC’s "block captain" program paying people $20 to knock on doors.
The opposition wasn't quiet, either. Outside the center, hundreds of protesters held signs like "Don't Let Elon Musk Buy Wisconsin." One woman, Brooke Buege, told reporters it was "disgusting" to see an unelected billionaire manipulating a state election.
The Aftermath and What It Means for You
The rally was a massive spike of energy, but did it work? Not exactly. A few days later, liberal candidate Susan Crawford won the seat with 55% of the vote. Despite Musk pouring over $20 million into the race through various PACs, Wisconsin voters went the other way.
It turns out that even in the age of viral town halls and million-dollar giveaways, local issues like abortion rights still carry more weight than a billionaire's national agenda.
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But don't think Musk is done with Wisconsin. The legal fallout is just starting. Watchdog groups have filed new lawsuits claiming the petition-for-cash scheme was an illegal lottery. They’re worried this becomes the "new normal" for every election in the state.
Actionable Insights for Following the Fallout:
- Track the Lawsuits: Follow the "Wisconsin Democracy Campaign v. Musk" case in Dane County. This will decide if his giveaway tactics can ever be used again in Wisconsin.
- Watch the Maps: Even though Crawford won, the fight over redistricting is heading back to the court. These rulings will determine who represents you in Congress for the next decade.
- Check the Data: Look at the final spending reports from the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. This race hit a record-breaking $100 million, making it the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history.
Understanding how money moves through these "nonpartisan" races is the only way to see the real strings being pulled behind the scenes.