Supreme Court race down to the wire

The way their names are being bandied about, one would think that Elon Musk and George Soros are on the ballot for Tuesday’s Supreme Court contest in Wisconsin, but they are not.

Instead, voters must choose between former Republican attorney general and current Waukesha County circuit judge Brad Schimel and Dane County circuit judge Susan Crawford.

Musk is backing Schimel, the conservative in the race, while Soros is backing Crawford, the liberal candidate, and both have put their money where their mouths are. Musk has reportedly chipped in at least $12 million total, including $2 million to the state Republican Party, while Soros is said to have thrown more than $1 million Crawford’s way via the Democratic Party, while Crawford herself has raised millions more than Schimel from individual donors.

To underscore just how Musk and Soros dominate the political conversation, in the only debate between the two, Schimel called Soros a dangerous man to have an endorsement from, while Crawford called Schimel “Elon Schimel.”

The importance of the race points to the reason those two wealthy donors have invested so much. The election is to replace the retiring liberal justice Ann Walsh Bradley. Progressives have a 4-3 majority, so the winner will decide which side of the aisle controls the court.

Whomever captures or holds the majority is not insignificant, each side agrees. If Crawford wins, Schimel says, the court will end parental rights, overturn right-to-work, remove voter ID, force biological men into girls’ bathrooms, declare school choice unconstitutional; and toss out Act 10, which prohibits most public sector collective bargaining.

Crawford and her campaign have painted a political portrait of Schimel that sounds just as dangerous.

Over the course of his career, the Crawford camp says, Schimel has proven himself to be a “far right” candidate who has failed women repeatedly, including by saying he supports Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion ban, which does not include exceptions for rape, incest, or the health of the mother. 

As attorney general, the Crawford campaign has said, Schimel let 6,000 untested rape kits sit idle under his watch, delaying justice for sexual assault victims and allowing violent offenders to walk free. And, as Waukesha county district attorney, Schimel allowed 26 rape kits to remain untested, her campaign alleges.

As the campaigns head down the stretch, each side has begun to target what they believe are vulnerabilities that matter to voters. Schimel has recently focused his attacks on what he says are light sentences handed down by Crawford in child sexual assault cases that Schimel said could have put the convicted behind bars for years.

Crawford and the Democratic Party have doubled down on the Musk connection and a campaign pitch that Musk is trying to buy the seat — he has a lawsuit pending in Wisconsin.

“As Elon Musk continues to flood money into Brad Schimel’s campaign in hopes of buying a seat on Wisconsin’s highest court, it’s important to remember what’s at stake in the April 1 elections,” Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin said this week. “Schimel has an anti-freedom, anti-health care agenda that will put billionaires like Elon Musk ahead of working families. Next week, every Wisconsin voter can send a message to Musk and the country that our elections aren’t for sale by voting for Susan Crawford and other candidates that will move Wisconsin forward.”

New polling released by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) last week shows the candidates tied among likely voters. The polling, conducted between March 9-10, shows a 47-47 split between Schimel and Crawford. Five percent of voters were undecided.

“Like many Wisconsin statewide elections, this race is very close and will come down to the wire,” said WMC vice president of government relations Scott Manley. “This is a winnable race for either candidate right now, and will simply boil down to whichever side does a better job of getting out their voters. It really cannot be overstated how much is on the line.”

In the beginning

The race was intense from the start, though perhaps not as rancorous as it quickly became.

Schimel announced first, back in December 2023, citing the need to restore integrity and objectivity to the state’s highest court.

“We need to restore confidence in the people of Wisconsin that the justice system will be fair and impartial,” Schimel said. “I will be honest about my principles, but will never prejudge a case and will never put my views above the law.”

Schimel said any responsible and ethical judge will have many cases where the first impressions they have from a case do not end up being the way they rule. 

“That’s because you keep an open mind, you listen to people and you apply the law impartially,” he said.

In his announcement, Schimel took aim at recently elected justice Janet Protasiewicz, whom he said made her views on potential lawsuits and current policy debates clear to the public.

That’s a dangerous precedent that should not be repeated, Schimel said.

“No one should come to court knowing that they have already lost,” he said. “A responsible jurist does not prejudge the case, and does not put their thumb on the scale. The liberal majority is poised to impose on the people of this state their will, rather than impartial judgment based on the law.”

Schimel also said the liberal majority’s tendency to meet in secret and to take away the powers of the chief justice were unprecedented and dangerous.

“There is an extraordinary danger when the high court feels it is above the law,” he said. “The legislature and the governor act as checks on each other. But there is no check on this new liberal Supreme Court majority. They have the final say in interpreting the Wisconsin Constitution and Wisconsin laws. The only check on them is to take back the majority by winning in 2025.”

Schimel served as a prosecutor for nearly two decades in the Waukesha County district attorney’s office and was elected Waukesha County district attorney in 2006. He became attorney general after winning the 2014 election. He lost his re-election bid in 2018.

In 2018, Schimel was appointed to fill a judicial vacancy on the Waukesha County circuit court and was subsequently elected in 2019 to a full six-year term.

When she announced last summer, Crawford cited her three decades of experience as a judge, prosecutor, attorney, and public servant.

“I am running for Supreme Court justice to protect the basic rights and freedoms of Wisconsinites under our constitution,” Crawford said. “Those rights are threatened by an all-out effort to politicize the court to drive a right-wing agenda. I believe Wisconsin deserves better.”

As a former prosecutor and a judge, Crawford said she knows the state needs Supreme Court justices who understand what it takes to keep communities safe, who are impartial and fair, who will use common sense, and who won’t politicize the constitution to undermine basic rights. 

“For the first time in years, we have a majority on the court focused on getting the facts right, following the law, and protecting our constitutional rights,” she said. “We can’t risk having that progress reversed.”

Crawford also says public safety is a priority issue.

“I believe people in Wisconsin deserve to feel safe as they go about their lives — in their homes, driving down the road, or walking to the grocery store,” she said. “My top priority in making decisions is always to make our communities safer.”

Crawford started her career as an assistant attorney general with the Wisconsin Department of Justice. She worked there as a prosecutor for almost 10 years, then continued her public service at multiple state agencies, including the Department of Corrections and Department of Natural Resources, before being named chief legal counsel to the governor. 

Following her service in state government, Crawford became a private practice attorney, where she says she protected voting and workers’ rights, and represented Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin to defend access to reproductive health care.

Elected judge in 2018, Crawford currently sits on Dane County Circuit Court Branch 1, where she has presided over homicide, sexual assault, and domestic violence cases, among others. 

Richard Moore is the author of “Dark State” and may be reached at richardd3d.substack.com.