Wisconsin High Court Declines to Hear Challenge of Musk Payments

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court declined to hear the state attorney general’s suit challenging Elon Musk’s payments to voters ahead of an election of a new justice onto the court’s bench.

The state supreme court unanimously denied Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul’s emergency petition on Sunday, according to a two-page decision with no further elaboration. The high court further denied Kaul’s motion to temporarily enjoin Musk from handing out $1 million checks to registered voters, ruling that the bid was moot.

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley wrote in a concurrence that while some of the high court justices would normally consider recusal from the suit due to their support for a candidate in the election, the “rule of necessity overrides recusal in this instance.” Justices Jill J. Karofsky and Rebecca Frank Dallet separately denied Musk and his America PAC’s motion asking them to recuse themselves.

Justices Annette Kingsland Ziegler, Rebecca Grassl Bradley, Brian Hagedorn, and Janet C. Protasiewicz joined the decision.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice represents Kaul.

The case is Kaul v. Musk, Wis., No. 2025AP000647, 3/30/25.