A Wisconsin judge on Saturday rejected a request from the state’s attorney general for an emergency injunction to prevent Elon Musk from giving $1 million to two voters who oppose “activist judges” in the upcoming Supreme Court election.
Musk, who has expressed support for Republican candidate Brad Schimel, is scheduled to deliver a speech in Wisconsin on Sunday to encourage residents to vote for Schimel. As part of his efforts, Musk plans to give $1 million each to two spokespeople who promote his message on the ground and offer $100 to voters who sign a petition against “activist judges.”
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, a Democrat, argued that Musk’s actions are illegal and filed a lawsuit on Friday to block them.
Initially, the case was assigned to Judge Susan Crawford, who recused herself, leading to the reassignment of the case to Columbia County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Voight. Voight ultimately decided not to issue the injunction blocking Musk’s planned payments.
“The Wisconsin Department of Justice is committed to ensuring elections in Wisconsin are safe, secure, free, and fair,” Kaul said in a statement to *The Hill*. “We are aware of the offer recently posted by Elon Musk to award a million dollars to two people at an event in Wisconsin this weekend.”
Kaul further emphasized that the department intended to seek legal action to stop Musk’s plans based on their understanding of Wisconsin law.
Despite this legal pushback, Musk is still set to hold his rally on Sunday. At the event, he will financially support voters backing Schimel over his liberal opponent, Susan Crawford, who is vying for an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which currently has a 3-3 ideological split.
Musk clarified his intentions in a series of posts on his social platform, X. “On Sunday night, I will give a talk in Wisconsin. Entrance is limited to those who have voted in the Supreme Court election,” Musk originally posted. Later, he updated his statement, saying: “To clarify a previous post, entrance is limited to those who have signed the petition in opposition to activist judges.”
Wisconsin state law prohibits offering anything of value to induce a voter to go to the polls or to vote a certain way. This law is central to the attorney general’s argument that Musk’s actions are illegal.
In previous elections, Musk also used his America PAC to make similar financial offers to voters supporting President Trump. While the Department of Justice issued a warning letter regarding those actions, it did not prevent him from proceeding with the payments.
