Donald Trump’s bid for a second presidency suffered a significant blow in Wisconsin on Tuesday, as voters elected a liberal judge to the state’s Supreme Court, despite extensive efforts by his billionaire advisor, Elon Musk, who invested millions to influence the outcome.
Liberal candidate Susan Crawford defeated Trump-endorsed Brad Schimel by a wide margin, with over 95 percent of the vote counted, according to US media reports.
In her victory speech, Crawford declared, “Wisconsin stood up and said loudly that justice does not have a price.” The race became the most expensive judicial contest in US history, with Republicans making a concerted effort to flip the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which has the authority to rule on critical issues like voting district boundaries. Musk personally invested $25 million into the race and even traveled to Wisconsin to rally support.
As the results came in, Musk took to his social media platform to criticize the left, claiming, “The long con of the left is the corruption of the judiciary.”
Trump, however, appeared to ignore the judicial race outcome, instead focusing on a separate Wisconsin ballot initiative that required voters to present photo ID to cast a ballot. He posted on TruthSocial late Tuesday, “Voter I.D. just approved in Wisconsin election…this is a big win for Republicans, maybe the biggest win of the night.”
Trump also celebrated the results of two House races in Florida, where Republican candidates retained control of two deeply conservative districts, though with narrower margins than expected for 2024.
