Voters will head to the polls Tuesday in Wisconsin and Florida to decide two House seats and a state Supreme Court seat, races that have attracted immense spending and will be bellwether’s for the country’s political pulse in 2025.
With that in mind, Score is looking at a few key themes to decipher what tomorrow’s elections mean — and what they don’t — heading into the rest of the year.
The Musk effect
Elon Musk has played a key role in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race between liberal candidate Susan Crawford and conservative candidate Brad Schimel — both as a target for Democrats in campaign ads and as a heavy financial backer for Republicans.
Which of those two will resonate more with voters? Tuesday may provide some answers.
Musk ramped up his efforts in Wisconsin in the final days — and also threw some cash behind Florida’s special election — as Republicans have faced a string of special election losses, including a shocker in Pennsylvania last week.
Despite some high-dollar donations backing Democrats from the likes of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and mega donor George Soros, no one is coming close to Musk. Two Musk-linked PACs have contributed a whopping $17 million in support of Brad Schimel, and Musk himself gave $3 million to the state Republican party.
Democrats have poured more into the race overall, though, putting nearly $40 million into television ads compared with $32 million from Republican groups, according to figures reported to AdImpact. Crawford’s campaign also outraised Schimel in the final stretch, raising $17 million compared to Schimel’s $7 million.
Democrats have used that to their advantage, cutting ads linking Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to Schimel. A plane flying over Milwaukee on Thursday carried a banner reading “Go Home Elon. Vote Susan.”
