In a major judicial victory for Democrats, Susan Crawford has won a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, defeating conservative former Attorney General Brad Schimel in a high-stakes race.
The election, held less than 100 days into President Donald Trump‘s return to the White House, was widely seen as a referendum on his administration. It also drew more than $90 million in spending, including over $25 million alone from Elon Musk and affiliated groups, making it the most-expensive judicial election in American history.
But, despite heavy investment from conservative donors, voters delivered Crawford a clear 9-point margin.
Her victory preserves the court’s 4-3 liberal majority, safeguarding control of one of the most politically consequential state supreme courts in the nation. It also ensures that a court with jurisdiction over hot-button issues—including abortion access, labor rights and redistricting—remain ideologically aligned with Democratic legal positions, heading into a critical election cycle in 2026.
File photo: Susan Crawford addresses a crowd Saturday, March 29, 2025 at a campaign stop at a field office for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee. File photo: Susan Crawford addresses a crowd Saturday, March 29, 2025 at a campaign stop at a field office for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee. Andy Manis/AP
Buoyed by this win, Democrats are optimistic about their prospects in 2026, viewing the election as a sign of growing momentum to flip both legislative chambers in the midterms.
Abortion Rights
The election could have major implications for reproductive rights in the state, with the court poised to decide on whether abortion rights should remain legal statewide more than two years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
After Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, Wisconsin abortion providers halted procedures, fearing prosecution under an 1849 law banning abortion except to save a patient’s life. Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul challenged the law, arguing it applies only to feticide. A Dane County circuit court judge then temporarily blocked enforcement of the law, but the state supreme court heard arguments in a case over the ban late last year. A ruling in that case is set to be released before Crawford joins the state supreme court bench.
However, the court is also expected to hear arguments in a separate case—filed by Planned Parenthood—over whether the Wisconsin constitution protects abortion rights. If it does, the 1849 ban could be struck down completely.
Crawford has avoided speaking directly about the 1849 ban. But, throughout her campaign, she released multiple ads slamming Schimel for his stance on abortion.
“Brad Schimel wants to make sure women don’t have the right to make their own health care decisions. If he wins, that right is gone,” Crawford said in a recent ad. “I trust women to make their own health care decisions.”
Her position on Wisconsin’s Supreme Court gives liberals the votes to potentially strike down the 176-year-old ban, a move that would preserve abortion access in one of the Midwest’s most closely watched political battlegrounds.
Labor Regulations
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is also poised to revisit a Republican-backed law that stripped most public employee unions of collective bargaining rights.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker enacted Act 10 in 2011, which significantly restricted collective bargaining rights for most public-sector employees, limiting negotiations to base wages and capping raises at inflation rates unless approved by referendum. It required unions to hold annual certification votes and barred automatic paycheck deductions for union dues. The law also increased employee contributions to pensions and health insurance, while exempting public safety workers such as police staff and firefighters from its restrictions.
A Dane County judge ruled last year that parts of Act 10 violated the state constitution, restoring collective bargaining rights to pre-2011 levels.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to fast-track an appeal, meaning a conservative appeals court will hear the case first, likely delaying it beyond the current term. This ensures Crawford, who previously challenged parts of Act 10 as a private attorney, will be on the bench when it reaches the High Court.
During the campaign, Crawford didn’t say whether she would recuse herself from the case due to her previous involvement, but noted the current case involves a different provision than the one she previously litigated. She added that, if the same provision were challenged, she would likely step aside.
“If the same provision that I was involved in litigating back in those early days was challenged again, I most likely would recuse,” Crawford said.
But even if she did step aside, then liberals would still have the votes needed to overturn the law. So, with a liberal majority now more solidified, labor advocates are eyeing a path to uphold the previous ruling that found parts of Act 10 unconstitutional.
Redrawing Electoral Map
Perhaps the most politically significant impact of Crawford’s win is the role the court could play in redistricting ahead of the 2026 midterms.
In 2023, the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s liberal majority ruled that Republican-drawn state Assembly and Senate maps were unconstitutional and ordered new maps to be drawn. As a result, Democrats gained 14 seats in the Assembly and state Senate in 2024.
Shortly after, the national Democratic law firm Elias Group filed a lawsuit challenging Wisconsin’s congressional maps and asked the Supreme Court to take it up immediately. Although these maps were drawn by Democratic Governor Tony Evers in 2021, they were created under the court’s former conservative majority’s directive to make the “least changes” possible to the congressional districts drawn and passed by Republicans in 2011.
Elias Group argued that, since the court’s liberal majority in 2023 ruled the “least changes” approach “lacks any basis in Wisconsin redistricting law or precedent” for state legislative maps, the same logic should apply to Evers’ congressional maps. However, the justices denied the firm’s request in an unsigned, unanimous order.
Crawford’s victory now provides an opportunity for Democrats and their allies to challenge the maps again, potentially arguing that the current district lines were drawn under now-rejected rules. Such rulings could make previously unwinnable districts more competitive for Democrats.
This month, Elon Musk expressed concern that a liberal court could attempt to redraw the state’s Republican-created congressional lines, potentially threatening the GOP’s slim majority in the U.S. House in next year’s midterm elections.
“Losing this judge race has a good chance of causing Republicans to lose control of the House. If you lose control of the House, there will be nonstop impeachment hearings. There will be nonstop hearings and subpoenas,” Musk, who runs Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, told Fox News on Tuesday.
Democratic U.S. House leader Representative Hakeem Jeffries also weighed in, calling Wisconsin’s congressional maps “broken.”
“As soon as possible, we need to be able to revisit that and have fairer lines,” Jeffries said during an event with Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin. “The only way for that to be even a significant possibility is if you have an enlightened Supreme Court.”
Morale Boost for Democrats
Crawford’s victory provides Democrats with a high-profile morale boost in a swing state that Trump won by less than 1 percent in 2024.
Democrats celebrated Susan Crawford’s victory in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race as a major win against conservative influence, particularly efforts backed by Musk and Trump.
“Tonight, the people of Wisconsin squarely rejected the influence of Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and billionaire special interests,” Martin said in a statement.
Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) President Heather Williams praised voters for rejecting GOP extremism. “Despite Republicans’ best efforts to buy this seat, Wisconsin voters showed up for their values and future. While Trump dismantles programs that taxpayers have earned, support, and are counting on, voters across the country are turning to state Democrats who are delivering on promises to lower costs and expand opportunities,” Williams said in a statement.
Ben Wikler, chair of the state’s Democratic Party, added: “Tonight, the people of Wisconsin squarely rejected the influence of Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and billionaire special interests.”
Crawford herself highlighted the significance of defeating Musk’s influence. “I’ve got to tell you, as a little girl growing up in Chippewa Falls, I never could have imagined that I’d be taking on the richest man in the world for justice and Wisconsin. And we won!” she told supporters in her victory speech.
“Today, Wisconsinites fended off an unprecedented attack on our democracy, our fair elections and our Supreme Court,” Crawford added. “And Wisconsin stood up and said loudly that justice does not have a price, our courts are not for sale.”
Democratic pollster Matt McDermott called the Republican loss a “massive failure,” noting their heavy spending and national support still resulted in a near-double-digit defeat.
“Really can’t overstate how much Republicans tried to win this Wisconsin Supreme Court race. They flooded the zone with outside dollars. Sent in major national figures. And lost by almost double digits. A massive failure for Republicans,” McDermott wrote on X.
Amid the win, Democrats are optimistic about their prospects in 2026.
“Wisconsinites’ next opportunity to rebuke GOP extremism and affirm Democratic leadership is the state legislative elections in 2026. After several cycles of laying the groundwork to build power in Wisconsin, the DLCC and state Democrats made massive gains in 2024 under fair maps. You can bet we’re laser-focused on finishing the job and flipping both chambers this cycle,” Williams said.
