Elon Musk Faces New Lawsuit Over $1M Giveaways After Donald Trump Wins Presidential Election

Key Takeaways

• Elon Musk’s America PAC gave away millions of dollars in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election.
• The Philadelphia District Attorney has accused Musk of running an illegal lottery.
• A lawsuit filed on Tuesday accuses the operation of fraud.

A $1 million daily giveaway offered by Elon Musk’s political action committee (PAC) landed itself in hot water with the Philadelphia District Attorney, who accused the operation of running an illegal lottery.

Now, on the day of a historic U.S. presidential election in which Donald Trump defeated Kamala Harris, an individual who took part in the initiative filed a lawsuit alleging fraud.

Elon Musk: One Million a Day To Boost Vote

During an event in October, Musk announced that until the election, America PAC would give away $1 million each day to registered voters who sign a petition pledging support for the First and Second Amendments.

However, there was a significant catch: voters needed to be registered in battleground states to qualify for any monetary rewards.
While cloaked in a nonpartisan appeal to the U.S. Constitution, critics argued that Musk’s giveaway terms were strategically designed to influence the election outcome, and legal experts have raised alarms about ethical and legal implications.

Accusations of Vote Buying

Although Musk’s scheme did not explicitly require participants to vote for Trump or any particular candidate, the small print that required voter registration in battleground states could be seen as an attempt to sway voter behavior in Trump’s favor.

As UCLA Law Professor and Director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project Richard Hasen has pointed out , election law doesn’t just prohibit buying votes directly. It is also illegal to pay people to register to vote.

Title 52 of the United States Code specifies that anyone who “pays or offers to pay or accepts payment either for registration to vote or for voting” could be liable for a fine of up to $10,000 or up to five years in prison.

What’s more, voters don’t need to receive direct monetary compensation to violate election law. As outlined in the Justice Department’s election crimes handbook, “the bribe may be anything having monetary value, including cash, liquor, lottery chances, and welfare benefits such as food stamps.”

Philadelphia DA Sues

As the campaign entered its final stretch, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner suggested in a statement that America PAC’s giveaways could violate state gambling and election laws.

“The Philadelphia District Attorney is charged with protecting the public from public nuisances and unfair trade practices, including illegal lotteries. The DA is also charged with protecting the public from interference with the integrity of elections,” he said.

After Musk failed to attend court on Thursday, Oct. 31, the two sides clashed over whether the issue should be dealt with at the state level.
Musk’s legal representative, Chris Gober, argued that state court was not the proper venue for the case and that the district attorney was, in fact, improperly meddling in the election.

Meanwhile, lawyers for the district attorney’s office called the move to federal court a “cowardly” delay tactic meant to “run the clock until election day.”

A Lottery or Not?

In Monday’s hearing, Gober made the case that the giveaway wasn’t a lottery. “There is no prize to be won. Instead, recipients must fulfill contractual obligations to serve as a spokesperson for the PAC,” he said .

Having heard both arguments, Judge Angelo Foglietta ultimately declined to block the giveaways.

While the decision was viewed by many as a victory for Musk and America PAC, one participant in the giveaway felt cheated by Gober’s revelation that winners weren’t chosen at random.

In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, plaintiff Jacqueline McAferty argued that Gober’s statements in court contradict what she was led to believe about the giveaway.

Citing his comment that recipients “are not chosen by chance” and that “we know exactly who will be announced as the $1 million recipient,” McAferty accused Musk and America PAC of fraud.

“Defendants made the false statements with the intention of inducing individuals to sign the petition,” the lawsuit observes. “Had Plaintiff been aware that she had no chance of receiving $1,000,000,” it adds, “she would not have signed or supported the America PAC petition.”