Wisconsin’s judicial election is nearly as important as Musk says

If you believe Elon Musk, today’s Wisconsin Supreme Court election will “affect the entire destiny of humanity”. He might only be overstating things a little.

The contest has become the most expensive judicial race in US history, beating the previous record set in 2023 when another Wisconsin Supreme Court seat was up for grabs.

This is partly down to Musk, who has handed out seven-figure cheques to two voters and donated more than $20 million to support the campaign of conservative candidate Brad Schimel.

The race will decide control of the highest court in a key swing state that is heavily gerrymandered in favour of the Republicans.

If the Democrats lose their majority, they will have little hope of redrawing the congressional lines towards something fairer.

Aside from the beltway balance of power, the result will also have an impact on the future of the state’s abortion ban and collective bargaining rights.

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