An emergency filing to block the payments was made on Sunday as the hotly contested Wisconsin Supreme Court election is scheduled for April 1.
Elon Musk handed out two $1 million checks on Sunday as prize money to Wisconsinites who signed an online petition by his political action group America PAC against “activist judges.”
The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Sunday unanimously refused to hear a last-minute petition from the state’s attorney general to block the checks.
The court, which has a 4–3 majority of liberal-leaning justices, gave no reason for its decision.
Two lower state courts had already rejected challenges submitted by Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, who had argued that Musk’s offer violates Wisconsin law that bars giving money or “anything of value” in exchange for voting.
“The Wisconsin Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that elections in Wisconsin are safe, secure, free and fair,” Kaul said in a statement on March 28. “Based on our understanding of applicable Wisconsin law, we have taken legal action to seek a court order to stop this from happening.”
In his petition submitted on March 30 to the Wisconsin high court, Kaul wrote that because of the timing of Musk’s offer, “immediate injunctive relief is warranted here to stop respondents’ ongoing illegal action.”
Last week, Kaul filed a lawsuit in a state circuit court to block Musk and his America PAC from distributing million-dollar payments to two randomly selected voters, but a judge rejected the petition on March 28. Kaul later appealed the case to the state’s appellate division, which also rejected it, prompting the Supreme Court appeal.
“As of the time of this filing, neither Musk nor America PAC have announced that their plan to pay $1 million to two Wisconsin electors on Sunday March 30, 2025, has been canceled,” the suit said.
Wisconsin is slated to hold an election for an open state Supreme Court seat on April 1. Five of the court’s seven justices have endorsed a candidate in the race, raising potential conflicts for them to hear the Musk lawsuit.
Candidates Susan Crawford and Brad Schimel are vying to serve a 10-year term on the Wisconsin Supreme Court after Justice Ann Walsh Bradley announced her retirement. Musk and President Donald Trump have both endorsed Schimel.
“If you have any friends or family in Wisconsin, send them a note and ask them to vote early for Justice Schimel,” Musk said in an event posted on social media platform X earlier this month.
