Elon Musk is paying voters again ahead of the Wisconsin Supreme Court election
Mia Sato is platforms and communities reporter with five years of experience covering the companies that shape technology and the people who use their tools.
Not satisfied with effectively buying a co-president role in Donald Trump’s administration, Elon Musk has turned his attention — and money — towards a key race in the swing state of Wisconsin. The billionaire’s America PAC is claiming to give $100 to registered voters who sign a petition against “activist judges.”
It’s not the first time Musk has promised money in exchange for signatures on petitions: he did the same thing leading up to the presidential election in November. It’s illegal to pay someone to vote or to register to vote, but Musk’s approach is meant to intentionally toe the line. Some election law experts say the tactic is legal because the offer doesn’t require a person actually vote; others say that requiring signatories be registered voters is what violates the law.
On April 1st Wisconsin voters will elect a new state Supreme Court justice, determining whether liberals will hold on to their 4-3 majority and rule on key issues like abortion, public sector unions, and gerrymandering. More than $76 million has been poured into the record breaking race already, with Musk-affiliated groups spending more than $14 million to try to elect conservative candidate Brad Schimel, who is trailing Dane County Judge Susan Crawford in the race. Liberal mega donors have also jumped in, with donations to the Wisconsin Democratic Party coming from individuals like Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman.
Musk and his America PAC have no way of confirming people who signed the petition actually voted — instead, they get voter contact information. Signing the petition requires people to share their first and last name, email, phone number, and mailing address, meaning the PAC can target voters in the weeks leading up to the election. The petition itself doesn’t mention Musk, Trump, or Schimel by name, but with a rolodex of registered voters in Wisconsin, the America PAC can urge those signatories to get out and vote for Musk (and Trump’s) favored candidate.
Despite Musk’s railing against “activist judges,” Schimel is a longtime, vocal Trump supporter, even dressing as him for Halloween last year. As The New York Times reported, Schimel has parroted Trump’s lies about “rigged” elections and campaigned with the president, injecting unabashedly partisan politics into a race for a nonpartisan seat.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court race is also personal for Musk outside of politics: Tesla is suing the state. In 2024, Wisconsin blocked Tesla from opening dealerships in the state, in line with a law that prohibits manufacturers from operating dealerships. In January Musk posted on X: “Very important to vote Republican for the Wisconsin Supreme Court to prevent voting fraud!” He referenced an election conspiracy theory about voting in his post.
