MADISON, Wis. (AP) 鈥 President Donald Trump on Friday called on his supporters to vote for a candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court who already had the full-throated backing of Trump's billionaire adviser Elon Musk.
鈥淎ll Voters who believe in Common Sense should GET OUT TO VOTE EARLY for Brad Schimel,鈥 Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Trump's post came a little over a week before the April 1 election that will determine control of the court, which since 2023 has a majority of liberal justices. Who controls the court will impact a wide range of pending high profile issues, like rights and , but it could also determine what the voting rules are for the 2026 midterms and 2028 presidential election in the battleground state.
Schimel reacted to Trump's post with a statement saying: 鈥淚鈥檓 humbled and deeply honored to receive the endorsement of our President.鈥 He added, 鈥淥n April 1, Wisconsin conservatives must unite to restore objectivity to our Supreme Court and save our state like we saved our country in November.鈥
Schimel, a former Republican attorney general, is a Trump backer who had previously said he would welcome an endorsement from the president. He also appeared at a rally with Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., in March, posed for a picture in front of a giant inflated Trump and attended Trump's inauguration in January. Schimel has also benefited from more than $12 million spent by groups funded by Musk.
One of the mailers used by the Musk group says that Schimel would back Trump's agenda from the Supreme Court. Trump Jr. stressed that a Schimel win was needed to protect his father's agenda. And Schimel told a group of Turning Point USA canvassers earlier this month that he needs to be elected to be part of a 鈥渟upport network鈥 for Trump.
鈥淒onald Trump doesn鈥檛 do this by himself; there has to be a support network around him,鈥 Schimel said, according to a video of his comments posted on YouTube. 鈥淭hey filed over 70 lawsuits against him since he took the oath of office barely a month ago, over 70 lawsuits to try to stop almost every single thing he鈥檚 doing because they don鈥檛 want him to get a win. 鈥
Schimel has also about unproven voter fraud that Trump raised following his 2020 loss.
Despite all of that, Schimel has repeatedly said he would not let his feelings about Trump impact any rulings he would make on the state Supreme Court, which came one vote away from reversing Trump's loss in Wisconsin in 2020. Trump won the state in both 2016 and 2024.
鈥淚f President Trump or anyone defies Wisconsin law and I end up with a case in front of me, I鈥檒l hold them accountable as I would anybody in my courtroom,鈥 Schimel said .
Schimel faces Democratic-backed candidate Susan Crawford in the election for an open seat. Liberals currently hold a 4-3 majority on the court. Whoever wins will be elected to a 10-year term that begins in August.
On Truth Social, Trump called Crawford 鈥渢he handpicked voice of the Leftists who are out to destroy your State, and our Country 鈥 And if she wins, the Movement to restore our Nation will bypass Wisconsin.鈥
A spokesman for Crawford's campaign said, 鈥淪chimel has spent his entire career on bent knee to right-wing special interests, we assumed he had this endorsement locked up months ago.鈥
This isn't the first time Trump has gotten involved in a Wisconsin Supreme Court race. He endorsed the conservative candidate in the 2023 led to liberals taking control of the court for the first time in 15 years.
