Pivotal Wisconsin Supreme Court election sees 53% early vote increase from last time—500,000 votes already cast

A pivotal election in Wisconsin for a seat on the state Supreme Court had already reached nearly 500,000 in early votes as of Thursday ahead of the election next week on Tuesday. This comes as efforts from Elon Musk as well as others have been pushing get out to vote efforts in the state.

The number of ballots already cast in the election is up by 53 percent in comparison to the 2023 spring election that took place around the same time of year. In person voting, in particular, has skyrocketed by 99 percent in comparison, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

The election pits the more conservative Circuit Judge Brad Schimel against the more liberal Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford against each other for the position. The race could mean the difference between the GOP losing two House seats in Congress due to the potential for redistricting of congressional lines.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has said that the election is vital and that if Crawford wins, the Supreme Court will be able to challenge “gerrymandered” districts in Wisconsin, per Wisconsin Public Radio. Jeffries told DNC Chair Ken Martin about the importance of the race, saying that Democrats must win it “because there are gerrymandered congressional lines right now in Wisconsin.”

The comments from Jeffries have sparked the GOP as well as Democrats to take a higher interest in the race, with Elon Musk’s America PAC handing out $1 million to a man who signed a petition in Wisconsin to “oppose activist judges.”

Part of the petition was a special offer to Wisconsin registered voters, where they would get $100 for signing and then get $100 for referring a signer of the petition who was also a registered voter in Wisconsin.

As of now, the GOP has a thin majority in the House, and flipping two seats in the midterms could mean control of the House goes to the Democrats.