Chippewa Falls Hosts Judge Susan Crawford for Hometown Rally

Chippewa Falls native Judge Susan Crawford visited her hometown Tuesday on her “Common Sense Justice Tour” ahead of the April 1st election.

The 10-day tour covering 21 counties is part of Judge Crawford’s final campaign sprint with less than a week to go until the nonpartisan Wisconsin Supreme Court election. The race has received a great deal of national attention in recent weeks, becoming the most expensive State Supreme Court race in American history. It has also seen Elon Musk-linked groups infuse millions of dollars in support of Judge Crawford’s conservative-backed opponent, Judge Brad Schimel. At times on Tuesday, Judge Crawford even joked that Elon Musk was her true opponent in the race.

Speaking on the amount of funding put into the campaign, Crawford said “When Elon Musk started spending millions of dollars, my team had to ramp up its own fundraising effort. And as a judge, I can’t ask anyone to make financial contributions. So it was really making sure that the people on my campaign who do that work ramp things up and make sure we got the support that we needed.”

In recent days, President Donald Trump endorsed Judge Schimel. Former President Barack Obama endorsed Judge Crawford just hours before her campaign stop in Chippewa Falls.

In addition to the national implications of the election, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will soon be asked to rule on a number of impactful state issues. The debate between Judge Crawford and Judge Schimel earlier this month covered topics ranging from congressional district maps to reproductive rights.

On Tuesday, Judge Crawford reiterated the importance of impartiality from the bench. “First of all, I work hard to get the facts right based on the evidence because the truth really matters in our justice system,” she said. “And I interpret and apply the laws fairly and impartially, and I never lose sight of the fact that the people in my courtroom are real people with real problems. That’s why they’re in the courtroom. And I use common sense to make sure my decisions are going to work in the real world and that’s what kind of Justice I’m going to be on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.”