GREEN BAY, Wis.—Elon Musk drew applause from supporters at a March 30 town hall meeting where he handed out $2 million to publicize a Republican-backed candidate’s race for the state Supreme Court, saying “I think this will be important for the future of civilization.”
He cast the race in historical terms, urging some 1,500 attendees inside the city’s convention center to mobilize friends and family members to vote on April 1.
“What’s happening on Tuesday is a vote for which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives,” Musk said. “And whichever party controls the House, to a significant degree, controls the country, which then steers the course of Western civilization.”
The court now has a 4–3 liberal majority, with one of the conservative justices considered a swing vote. If that majority remains intact, according to Musk, congressional district maps will be redrawn to favor Democrats, altering the balance of power in Congress.
Outside the convention hall, protestors rallied against what they said was an attempt to buy a seat on the state’s high court.
Candidates in the race for a 10-year term are Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel, backed by Musk and Republicans, and Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford, supported by the state’s Democratic party.
“Elon Musk is trying to buy Wisconsin, and we want to show him that we’re not for sale,” Kristin Lyerly, 54, of Green Bay told The Epoch Times. Lyerly had helped to organize the sidewalk protest against Musk, which police estimated at about 300 people before the event began.
Some protestors were more concerned with Musk’s work as head of the Department of Government Efficiency, saying that workforce reductions undermined the good work being done by civil servants.
Others protested what they saw as unfair privilege for the wealthy.
“We’ve been the pawns of billionaires since the Mayflower got here,” Valerie Horn, 41, of Waterford, told The Epoch Times. “We deserve a more equal society.”
Inside the hall, Navin Jaruqumillia, 53, of Madison, was mystified by the protests against Musk. “I have no idea what the obsession with Elon Musk is,” Jaruqumillia told The Epoch Times.
“The fact of the matter is 77 percent of . . . Susan Crawford’s money came from out-of-state donors,” Jaruqumillia said.
Jaruqumillia is the secretary of the Republican Party of Dane County, Wisconsin.
Some attendees approved of Musk’s work on government efficiency.
“I think what Elon Musk is doing is very admirable, exposing the waste, exposing the fraud,” Kevin Magee, 57, of Gillett told The Epoch Times.
Ramona Marquardt, 34, of Green Bay, said she had only recently become interested in politics but said she had been impressed by Musk’s work with SpaceX and his values.
“A lot of the things that are happening in schools these days are not in line with what I believe,” Marquardt, who has a child in second grade, told The Epoch Times. She said she appreciated Musk’s support of President Donald Trump’s positions on education.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court later unanimously rejected Kaul’s request without comment.
During the event, Musk handed checks for $1 million each to Nicholas Jacobs and to Ekaterina Diestler, signers of the petition.
Musk also announced an initiative by America PAC to motivate attendees to go door to door publicizing the election and Schimel’s candidacy. Participants would be paid $20 for getting prospective voters to pose for a photograph holding a picture of Schimel.
Noting that the major betting markets showed Crawford most likely to win the race, Musk said an extraordinary effort was required.
“We’re basically going to dragnet the state,” Musk said. “Everybody’s going to mobilize everywhere, like crazy, for the next 48 hours. And I think this will be important for the future of civilization.”
Election watchers agree that this contest will come down to voter turnout.
Musk was joined at the event by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who is a former congressman from Wisconsin, and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.).
For well over an hour, Musk fielded questions from attendees on subjects ranging from the use of artificial intelligence in education to government efficiency, Bitcoin, the Federal Reserve, and Social Security.
Musk, joined by investor Antonio Gracias, who is part of the Department of Government Efficiency team, used many of the questions as occasions to highlight what he described as a mind-boggling level of fraud and waste in government spending.
“We’re really just trying to restore common sense to government,” Musk said. “Let’s see if we can make it 15 percent more efficient. And I’m confident that we can.”
