Wisconsin’s April 1 spring election was a good night for liberal and progressive interests as Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford defeated former state Attorney General Brad Schimel in what became the most expensive Wisconsin Supreme Court election in history, and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jill Underly earned another term by fending off a challenge from Republican-backed Brittany Kinser.
In the lone conservative victory, a solid majority of voters approved elevating Wisconsin’s photo ID requirement for voting from a state law to a constitutional amendment. With 90% of the ballots counted, unofficial results showed the amendment passing with nearly 63% of the vote, according to the Associated Press.
Crawford’s victory in the Supreme Court race was hailed as a repudiation of technology executive Elon Musk, whose controversial budget cutting with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and funding support of the Republican-aligned Schimel galvanized Democratic turnout statewide. On the final weekend of the campaign, Musk also traveled to Wisconsin to campaign on Schimel’s behalf, but it wasn’t enough as Crawford, who emphasized public employee union rights and abortion rights, emerged victorious in a result that wasn’t as close as some predicted.
With 91% of the votes cast, Crawford led Schimel 54% to 45%, a margin of 184,000 votes, as liberals maintained their 4-3 court majority. Thanks in part to outside money from Musk and others backing Crawford, the two candidates combined are expected to surpass $100 million in campaign spending.
The race was considered by some to be a referendum on the Trump administration, and it could have implications for abortion rights, Congressional redistricting, and the fate of Act 10, the 2011 state law that eliminated collective bargaining rights for most public employees.
Meanwhile, Underly’s winning margin, 53%, was slightly narrower, as she held off a challenge from Kinser, a supporter of charter and voucher schools who claimed Underly has eroded K-12 educational standards. During the campaign, Underly called for a $3 billion increase in public school funding in the next state budget, and she called for an end to Wisconsin’s school voucher program.
