Philadelphia’s Democratic district attorney has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to block X owner Elon Musk’s $1 million daily donation to swing state voters.
Larry Krasner sued to stop the measure, which would affect battleground states including Pennsylvania, calling it an “illegal lottery scheme” that violates consumer protection laws, according to the Philadelphia researcher.
Tesla’s CEO is giving away a large sum of cash to a random registered voter in seven swing states who has signed his American PAC petition in support of the First and Second Amendment every day until November 5.
Two residents of Pennsylvania, a swing state that could help decide the upcoming election, were the first recipients over the weekend. While Musk’s lottery is open to all residents of swing states, participants must back pledges that more closely align with the Republican Party’s election campaign.
Election law experts have raised concerns about the legality of Musk’s giveaway, but Krasner’s lawsuit is the first legal action challenging the controversial giveaway.
Philadelphia’s Democratic district attorney has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to block X owner Elon Musk’s $1 million donation to the swing state.
Kristine Fishell is one of the winners of Elon Musk’s $1 million daily giveaway. An electoral law expert has joined a cacophony of voices describing the measure as unethical or even potentially illegal.
The Tesla CEO and richest man in the world recently announced that every day until the presidential election on November 5, he would give away a large sum of cash to a random registered voter from seven swing states who have signed his America PAC petition. in support of the first and the second. amendment
“America PAC and Musk must be stopped, immediately, before the upcoming presidential election on November 5,” Krasner’s lawsuit reads.
“That’s because America PAC and Musk devised their illegal lottery scheme to influence voters in that election.”
Musk’s supporters say he is not influencing the outcome of the election and that Democrats are desperate to stop him as Kamala Harris’ campaign loses steam.
It comes a week after the US Department of Justice also warned Musk that the gift violates federal laws prohibiting voter inducements.
Musk’s US PAC has committed nearly $75 million to Trump’s re-election.
Derek Muller, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, explained why Musk’s gifts could be illegal.
“When you start limiting prizes or gifts to only registered voters or only to people who have voted, that’s where bribery problems arise,” he told CNN.
Muller warned that by limiting the giveaway to only registered voters, it appears as if Musk is handing out cash for voter registration.
The CNN contributor added that offering free money to already registered voters before the drawing was announced would violate federal law.
However, he described the offer to people not yet registered as “much more problematic” because it could be seen as possible persuasion to register.
Muller said most states only criminalize paying people to vote and that it was rare for prosecutors to pursue election bribery cases, especially as the Supreme Court continued to narrow the scope of bribery statutes.
Former Justice Department official who handles voting rights cases, David Becker, further criticized Musk’s gift by stating that it is “strong evidence” that the billionaire is trying to influence the race by offering the incentive only in seven undecided states.
He said: “This is not a particularly close case, this is exactly what the statute was designed to criminalize.”
This is breaking news with updates to follow.