Susan Crawford won an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Tuesday, securing the court’s liberal wing another two years in the majority and giving Democrats a major win just months after they were shut out of power in Washington.
Crawford, the liberal candidate in the race, was leading Brad Schimel, a fellow circuit court judge, 56 percent to 44 percent when The Associated Press called the race at 10:16 p.m. Eastern time.
The technically nonpartisan race for a 10-year term was the most expensive state judicial election in U.S. history, with millions of dollars from outside groups flooding into Wisconsin over the past few months. That included more than $18 million from political organizations linked to Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Tesla who is leading President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency effort. Crawford also benefited from billionaire backing, with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and philanthropist George Soros both investing in support of the liberal candidate.
