Elon Musk likely broke the law by giving voters $1 million, Wisconsin board says
The Wisconsin Elections Commission has referred complaints to a district attorney regarding Elon Musk's $1 million giveaway to voters during a state Supreme Court election. The commission found probable cause that the payments were intended to induce voting, potentially violating state election bribery laws.
Why it matters
This case highlights the legal boundaries of political spending and the influence of billionaire donors in local judicial elections.
Billionaire Elon Musk likely broke Wisconsin law when he handed out $1 million checks to voters in the 2025 state Supreme Court election, a bipartisan panel has found. The Wisconsin Elections Commission last week referred two complaints to the Brown County district attorney’s office, which can choose to bring criminal charges over violating the state law against election bribery. Prosecutors have 40 days to report back to the commission. Musk, the founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla, was deeply involved in the effort to flip majority control of the highest court in battleground Wisconsin. The tech titan and groups he supported spent at least $20 million on the candidate backed by Republicans, Brad Schimel. However, he lost by 10 percentage points to Democratic-backed candidate Susan Crawford. A month after the lopsided loss, Musk announced that he would be spending far less on political campaigns.
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