As Democrats celebrate a battleground-state win in the most expensive judicial campaign in U.S. history, President Donald Trump and the GOP are confronting a worrying early sign about what the intense spotlight on Elon Musk\u2019s influence means for the party. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Musk, the billionaire White House adviser, played a starring role<\/a> in the race, using personal funds and allied outside groups to put more than $15 million behind former Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel, the Trump-endorsed candidate who ran against Madison County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford. Crawford and her allies responded in kind, using Musk as a foil and scoring a decisive win<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though the race was technically nonpartisan, there were intense partisan overtones \u2014 and it functionally transformed into a proxy vote<\/a> on Trump\u2019s first two months in office and especially on Musk, who has become one of the most powerful people in Republican politics since Trump won last year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet while the results were not promising in Republicans\u2019 first statewide test of the second Trump administration, Trump advisers are \u2014 at least for now \u2014 brushing off the loss, noting it was an off-year election with lower turnout than the recent presidential race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe results are what they are. It\u2019s an off-year race and predictive of nothing,\u201d a Trump adviser said. \u201cI don\u2019t think you can read too much into it, including Elon\u2019s role.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A source familiar with Musk\u2019s thinking was on the same page, brushing off the loss as the result of an \u201cuphill battle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cElon was a happy warrior this entire race, knowing full well it was an uphill battle. The only reason Schimel was able to make this a race was because Elon got involved,\u201d said the source familiar with Musk\u2019s thinking. \u201cHe put the Democrats on defense and made them empty their coffers in a race that should\u2019ve never been competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The person added that Musk\u2019s effort to help Republican campaigns will continue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe\u2019s going to continue to be active and isn\u2019t ceding anything to Democrats,\u201d the person said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even so, on the heels of Schimel\u2019s loss, Republicans are assessing how Musk\u2019s spotlight-stealing influence will shape key political races headed into the midterms in 2026, when Republicans will defend a narrow House majority. While turnout in Wisconsin did not hit presidential levels, it did come close to the number of people who voted in the 2022 midterms in the state \u2014 closer to a regular election than a low-turnout blip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cElon is great for Trump because he\u2019s a shield,\u201d said a Republican operative who advised Musk on the Wisconsin race. But, the person added, the ability to attract so much heat is \u201cbad for elections, because he energizes the Democrats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The recent NBC News poll<\/a> found a majority of voters nationwide (51%) holding negative views of Musk, while 39% viewed him positively. Neither Musk nor Trump had spoken publicly about the Wisconsin result as of 11 p.m. Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The White House\u2019s political arm, including Musk, played an \u201cunprecedented\u201d role in the contest, highlighting the importance of the race to Trump \u2014 and the stinging nature of the loss. Trump endorsed Schimel and publicly hyped the importance of the race, but much of the attention in the weeks leading up to Election Day were squarely focused on Musk, who was Trump\u2019s biggest donor last year and has signaled ambitions to use his massive wealth to influence races in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n