The world’s richest man is back to offering voters cash ahead of a race to determine the makeup of Wisconsin’s highest court.
Elon Musk’s America PAC — known for its potentially illegal million-dollar giveaways ahead of the 2024 election — is offering Wisconsin voters who pledge their opposition to “activist judges” a $100 payout, a giveaway that comes weeks before a high-profile race for a state Supreme Court seat.
“Judges should interpret laws as written, not rewrite them to fit their personal or political agendas,” stated a post to X from the PAC, which was then shared by Musk.
The April 1 race between former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel and liberal-leaning Judge Susan Crawford has drawn millions in donations from right-wing billionaires and is on track to become one of the most expensive judicial races in the country’s history. Its outcome will decide the state's Supreme Court's ideological leanings for years to come.
Another Musk-funded PAC, Building America’s Future, made headlines for spending $1.6 million on ads accusing Crawford of going easy on sex criminals. But the direct cash handout is the biggest attempt to move the needle yet from Musk, who spent over $250 million to influence the outcome of November’s presidential race.
Still, the offer might be too good to be true. Musk’s promise of payments between $47 and $100 each to petition signers and referrers in swing states last year was an easy sell for many, but some say payday never came. A New York Post report from January found Musk’s PAC was still on the hook for hundreds of thousands in payments to multiple swing state volunteers.
“I’ve done a lot for this PAC. I’ve earned my [money,] and the silence is deafening,” one Arizona voter told the Post. “Elon Musk gave us a voice, and is now not living up to the promise.”
The payouts are part of Musk’s broader strategy to remake state and federal judiciaries. The DOGE boss is also campaigning to remove a federal judge who ruled against the administration, donating cash to GOP lawmakers who back an impeachment effort.
