Musk gives away two $1.3m cheques to Wisconsin voters in state Supreme Court race
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Tesla CEO Elon Musk giving a US$1 million cheque during a town hall in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on March 30.
PHOTO: AFP
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GREEN BAY – Billionaire Elon Musk on March 30 handed out US$1 million (S$1.3 million) cheques to two voters in Wisconsin and promised smaller payments to others who helped elect a conservative candidate to the state’s top court in a closely watched election.
The Tesla CEO, a top adviser to US President Donald Trump, handed out oversized cheques at a rally in Green Bay as he sought to drum up enthusiasm for a state Supreme Court election that is already the most expensive judicial race in US history.
Mr Musk said he would also pay supporters US$20 for every voter they recruit over the next two days.
He said he was spending the money to raise awareness of a race in which liberal Susan Crawford seems to be running ahead of conservative Brad Schimel.
“We actually are in serious danger of losing the election,” he said. “We’ve got to pull a rabbit out of a hat.”
The April 1 contest will determine the ideological tilt of the state’s top court as it considers abortion rights, labour rights and possibly election rules.
Technically non-partisan, the race is seen as an early referendum on Mr Trump in a politically competitive state.
Mr Musk warned that the court might redraw legislative districts in a way that could cause Mr Trump’s Republicans to lose seats in the US House of Representatives.
“I think this will be important for the future of civilisation. It’s that significant,” Mr Musk said.
Up to last week, groups affiliated with Mr Musk had spent at least US$17.5 million to support Mr Schimel, according to New York University’s Brennan Centre for Justice – more than one-fifth of the US$81 million spent in total on the race.
Mr Musk’s US$1 million giveaway echoed his tactics from the 2024 presidential election, when he gave cheques to voters who signed petitions supporting conservative causes.
Wisconsin’s attorney-general, Democrat Josh Kaul, sued to block the giveaway, but the state supreme court ruled it could go ahead, according to the Washington Post.
Mr Musk spent more than US$250 million to help elect Mr Trump in 2024, far more than any other individual, and his appearance in Wisconsin showed his willingness to get involved in down-ballot races as well.
Mr Trump has deputised Mr Musk to oversee an unprecedented effort to slash the federal government that has effectively shuttered several agencies and fired tens of thousands of workers. REUTERS
