With the April 1 election less than two weeks away, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race is expected to become the most expensive judicial election in American history.
Waukesha County Circuit Judge Brad Schimel, a former Republican attorney general, faces off against Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford in an attempt to flip the court’s 4-3 liberal majority.
If Crawford wins, liberals will maintain their 4-3 majority until at least 2028. Janet Protasiewicz, who campaigned largely on the issue of abortion rights, won her election to the court in April 2023, establishing a liberal majority for the first time in 15 years.
The race that year blew past national spending records in a judicial contest, with more than $51 million spent on both sides, based on a tally by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign. The organization, which monitors campaign spending, held a press briefing Monday to share preliminary findings on spending for the upcoming election. Executive Director Nicholas Ramos said at the briefing that, at the current pace, spending for this year’s contest could double last year’s total.
Wisconsin Supreme Court races are officially nonpartisan, but political groups often support their preferred candidates. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has endorsed Crawford, while Schimel has backing from conservative lawmakers like U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden.
Successful political campaigns cost money. When races get tight, campaigns rush to raise and spend large sums to get the word out.
The Wisconsin Ethics Commission (WEC) limits the amount individuals can contribute to a Supreme Court candidate's campaign to $20,000 per election cycle. This restricts large donors who wish to influence the election in a larger way, this limit can be circumvented by donating to — or founding — a Political Action Committee (PAC).
This cycle, PACs have collectively pumped $21.6 million and counting into the Supreme Court race, according to a Daily Cardinal analysis of Federal Election Commission and WEC data. The graphics below show the top PAC spenders, their party alignment and top donors.
Some PACs may receive unlimited contributions from individuals, corporations, labor unions and other PACs for the purpose of financing independent expenditures — spending for a communication that advocates the election or defeat of a candidate without coordination with any candidate, their campaign or political party.
From CEOs to Elon Musk, the mega donors listed below leverage their wealth to influence elections according to their ideologies. Notable contributors include heirs of the Walmart fortune, Koch Industries and the CEO of Uline.
Independent expenditure committees have reported spending more than $21.6 million to date in expressed opposition and support of the two candidates. PACs and other interest groups form independent expenditure committees and, even ones from out of state, do not have to disclose all of their information to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission.
Voters should be aware that the more than $21.6 million is only what must be presently reported by law and thus may not reflect what these organizations actually spend. Spending by these groups may not be fully known until after the election, possibly as late as July.
Note: The independent expenditures listed below are exclusively for the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. Donations are made to the PAC nationally, although some only spend in Wisconsin.
Ty Javier is a senior staff writer and photographer at The Daily Cardinal. He is an Economics major and has specialized in university and campaign finances, economic policy and transit.
