Wisconsin panel finds probable cause against Musk over USD 1 million voter cheques
Wisconsin's elections commission has found probable cause that Elon Musk's USD 1 million voter cheques broke state law. The referral to the Brown County district attorney sharpens scrutiny of cash giveaways in a record-cost court race.
A bipartisan panel in Wisconsin has found probable cause that billionaire Elon Musk likely broke state law when he handed out USD 1 million cheques to voters during the 2025 state Supreme Court election. The Wisconsin Elections Commission has referred two complaints to the Brown County district attorney's office, which can decide whether to bring criminal charges under the state's law against election bribery.
The complaints relate to Musk's role in a high-stakes contest for control of Wisconsin's highest court. Musk and groups he supported spent at least USD 20 million backing Republican-supported candidate Brad Schimel, who lost by 10 percentage points to Democratic-backed Susan Crawford in a race that cost more than USD 100 million and became the most expensive judicial election in US history.
The complaints, which are confidential under state law, were filed by voters in Milwaukee and Green Bay in Brown County. Musk handed out the cheques at a rally in Green Bay just days before the election. The six-member Wisconsin Elections Commission, made up of three Democrats and three Republicans, voted 5-1 in a closed session on Thursday to send the complaints to the district attorney, commission spokesperson Emilee Miklas said.
The motion approved by the commission said it found probable cause that Musk violated Wisconsin law by making a social media post offering USD 1 million to people who voted in the Supreme Court election "in order to induce them to vote in that election".
Brown County District Attorney David Lasee, a Republican, did not immediately respond on Tuesday to a request for comment. Prosecutors have 40 days to report back to the elections commission. Spokespeople for Musk also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Musk, the founder of SpaceX and chief executive officer of Tesla, was heavily involved in the attempt to flip majority control of the court in the battleground state. A month after Schimel's defeat, Musk said he would spend far less on political campaigns.
Three Wisconsin voters received cheques from Musk, including two who got them in person at the Green Bay rally. Two weeks before the election, Musk's political action committee, America PAC, offered USD 100 to voters who signed a petition opposing "activist judges" or referred someone else to sign it.
Crawford's victory kept liberals in control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Their majority later increased to 5-2 after Democratic-backed candidate Chris Taylor won this year.
Musk's spending on the 2025 race has already led to a separate lawsuit by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a government watchdog group. The case, which is pending in Brown County, seeks to bar Musk from offering cash payments in the state again. It alleges that Musk and two groups he funds violated bans on vote bribery and unauthorised lotteries, and that his actions amounted to an unlawful conspiracy and public nuisance.
Wisconsin's Democratic attorney general had also tried to stop Musk from giving the cheques to two voters, but state courts rejected that effort. In court filings in 2025, Musk's lawyers argued that he was exercising his free speech rights and that any attempt to restrict the giveaways would violate both the Wisconsin and US constitutions. The payments were "intended to generate a grassroots movement in opposition to activist judges, not to expressly advocate for or against any candidate," they said.
Musk's political action committee had used a very similar approach before the 2024 presidential election, offering USD 1 million a day to voters in Wisconsin and six other battleground states who signed a petition supporting the First and Second amendments. A judge in Pennsylvania allowed that effort to continue through Election Day, saying prosecutors had failed to show it was an illegal lottery. The Wisconsin case now centres on whether Musk's payments in the 2025 Supreme Court race amounted to unlawful inducement for voters.
With PTI Inputs
A bipartisan panel in Wisconsin has found probable cause that billionaire Elon Musk likely broke state law when he handed out USD 1 million cheques to voters during the 2025 state Supreme Court election. The Wisconsin Elections Commission has referred two complaints to the Brown County district attorney's office, which can decide whether to bring criminal charges under the state's law against election bribery.
The complaints relate to Musk's role in a high-stakes contest for control of Wisconsin's highest court. Musk and groups he supported spent at least USD 20 million backing Republican-supported candidate Brad Schimel, who lost by 10 percentage points to Democratic-backed Susan Crawford in a race that cost more than USD 100 million and became the most expensive judicial election in US history.
The complaints, which are confidential under state law, were filed by voters in Milwaukee and Green Bay in Brown County. Musk handed out the cheques at a rally in Green Bay just days before the election. The six-member Wisconsin Elections Commission, made up of three Democrats and three Republicans, voted 5-1 in a closed session on Thursday to send the complaints to the district attorney, commission spokesperson Emilee Miklas said.
The motion approved by the commission said it found probable cause that Musk violated Wisconsin law by making a social media post offering USD 1 million to people who voted in the Supreme Court election "in order to induce them to vote in that election".
Brown County District Attorney David Lasee, a Republican, did not immediately respond on Tuesday to a request for comment. Prosecutors have 40 days to report back to the elections commission. Spokespeople for Musk also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Musk, the founder of SpaceX and chief executive officer of Tesla, was heavily involved in the attempt to flip majority control of the court in the battleground state. A month after Schimel's defeat, Musk said he would spend far less on political campaigns.
Three Wisconsin voters received cheques from Musk, including two who got them in person at the Green Bay rally. Two weeks before the election, Musk's political action committee, America PAC, offered USD 100 to voters who signed a petition opposing "activist judges" or referred someone else to sign it.
Crawford's victory kept liberals in control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Their majority later increased to 5-2 after Democratic-backed candidate Chris Taylor won this year.
Musk's spending on the 2025 race has already led to a separate lawsuit by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a government watchdog group. The case, which is pending in Brown County, seeks to bar Musk from offering cash payments in the state again. It alleges that Musk and two groups he funds violated bans on vote bribery and unauthorised lotteries, and that his actions amounted to an unlawful conspiracy and public nuisance.
Wisconsin's Democratic attorney general had also tried to stop Musk from giving the cheques to two voters, but state courts rejected that effort. In court filings in 2025, Musk's lawyers argued that he was exercising his free speech rights and that any attempt to restrict the giveaways would violate both the Wisconsin and US constitutions. The payments were "intended to generate a grassroots movement in opposition to activist judges, not to expressly advocate for or against any candidate," they said.
Musk's political action committee had used a very similar approach before the 2024 presidential election, offering USD 1 million a day to voters in Wisconsin and six other battleground states who signed a petition supporting the First and Second amendments. A judge in Pennsylvania allowed that effort to continue through Election Day, saying prosecutors had failed to show it was an illegal lottery. The Wisconsin case now centres on whether Musk's payments in the 2025 Supreme Court race amounted to unlawful inducement for voters.
With PTI Inputs
