Musk group offering $100 for Wisconsin petition against ‘activist judges’

• Elon Musk’s super PAC is offering Wisconsin voters $100 to sign a petition opposing “activist judges” who ruled against the Trump administration. Paying voters is a controversial strategy he used during the 2024 election.
• Musk is backing conservative candidate Judge Brad Schimel in the Wisconsin election, where the outcome could shift the state’s highest court back to Conservatives after a 2023 Liberal victory.
• Critics, including a spokesperson for Judge Schimel’s opponent, accuse Musk of “buying votes.”

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Elon Musk is bringing back one of his most controversial strategies from the 2024 presidential election. His America Political Action Committee is offering Wisconsin voters $100 to sign a petition opposing what he called “activist judges” who ruled against the Trump administration.

Last year, Musk’s super PAC awarded $1 million each day to one swing state voter selected by the group who had signed a pro-Trump petition.

What is Musk offering Wisconsin voters?

The offer to Wisconsin voters comes as Musk and President Donald Trump called for the impeachment of U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who questioned the administration’s deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members to a controversial prison in El Salvador. 

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Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rejected the calls to impeach. Roberts said it was not an appropriate response to a disagreement concerning a judicial judge.

The petition to Wisconsin voters reads:

“Judges should interpret laws as written, not rewrite them to fit their personal or political agendas. By signing below, I’m rejecting the actions of activist judges who impose their own views and demanding a judiciary that respects its role — interpreting, not legislating.”

What’s at stake in the Wisconsin election?

The Wisconsin election could swing control of the state’s highest court back to Conservatives after Liberals won a major victory there in 2023. 

Musk’s super PAC has spent over $11 million in an attempt to elect Conservative candidate, Judge Brad Schimel, who is taking on Liberal candidate Judge Susan Crawford.

Crawford’s campaign spokesperson released a statement to the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal Friday, March 21, accusing Musk of “buying votes.”

Is paying voters legal?

Those who receive Musk’s money don’t have to vote the way he wants them to. Voter privacy laws also guarantee no one will know how they vote once they are in the voting booth.

The question of whether paying voters is legal came up regarding Musk’s tactic during the November election, leading to the Philadelphia district attorney suing to stop the distribution of the lottery-style payouts.

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But the day before Election Day, a Pennsylvania judge declined to stop the sweepstakes. 

Michael Maistelman, a Wisconsin election lawyer, told the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal that offering money in exchange for signing a petition, even if it’s not directly tied to voting, could be considered “an improper inducement” or an attempt to influence the election process.

Wisconsin’s spring election is April 1.