Trump touts Schimel ahead of Wisconsin Supreme Court vote
President Trump is promoting the conservative candidate, Judge Brad Schimel, ahead of Tuesday's Wisconsin Supreme Court vote, which is seen as the first test of the second Trump term.
“Brad Schimel’s Opponent, Susan Crawford, is a DISASTER! She is so Far Left that even her own Party, the Radical Democrats, don’t want ANYTHING to do with her,” Trump said in a post late Sunday on Truth Social.
“Wisconsin Values are perfectly represented by Brad Schimel. He is a Conservative, Strong and, above all, SANE,” he added. “His Opponent is a Liberal Lunatic who will throw our Country, and the State of Wisconsin, into TOTAL CHAOS. Vote for Brad Schimel!”
The Wisconsin Supreme Court election is being viewed as the first critical bellwether of Trump’s second term.
Democratic energy appears to be growing on the grassroots level, but much of the election’s attention has been focused on Elon Musk.
Musk held a town hall in Wisconsin late Sunday. Event attendees were required to sign a petition against the “activist judges,” and the billionaire chose two people to receive $1 million checks. The decision to hand out money is controversial, with the state’s attorney general asking for the “illegal payments” to be blocked, describing them as a way to buy votes.
Democrats are looking to harness anger toward Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency and has slashed federal spending.
Schimel, the conservative candidate, previously said he is looking for the support of Wisconsin voters and doesn’t have control over what outside groups do in the lead up to the election.
While Musk argued that the election could determine “the future of America and Western Civilization,” experts are cautioning that the off-year election may have low turnout and not be representative of the larger population and the changes underway across the country.
"Schimel has spent his entire career on bent knee to right-wing special interests, and in the closing days of the campaign, Schimel's handlers Elon Musk and Donald Trump are lashing out as his Schimel's record of failures catches up to him," liberal candidate Judge Susan Crawford's spokesperson, Derrick Honeyman, said in a statement to The Hill.
"Schimel has said he wants to be a 'support network' for Trump and that the Wisconsin Supreme Court 'screwed over' Trump in 2020. Wisconsinites should reject Brad Schimel at the ballot box tomorrow."
Updated at 9:37 a.m. EDT