US Election 2024: A Pennsylvania judge ruled on Monday that Elon Musk’s $1 million-a-day voter sweepstakes, hosted by his political action committee in key swing states, can continue through Tuesday’s presidential election.
As reported by the Associated Press, Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta made the decision after Musk’s legal team clarified that the winners are paid spokespeople, not randomly selected. The judge did not provide an immediate explanation for his ruling.
District Attorney Larry Krasner, a Democrat, described the sweepstakes as a scam “intended to influence a national election” and called for it to be shut down.
However, Musk’s lawyer, Chris Gober, stated that the final two recipients of the $1 million-a-day sweepstakes before Tuesday's presidential election would be selected in Arizona on Monday and Michigan on Tuesday.
“The $1 million recipients are not chosen by chance," Gober said Monday. “We know exactly who will be announced as the $1 million recipient today and tomorrow.”
Chris Young, the director and treasurer of America PAC, testified that the recipients are vetted ahead of time, to “feel out their personality, (and) make sure they were someone whose values aligned” with the group, the report said.
Musk’s lawyers, defending the effort, called it “core political speech” given that participants sign a petition endorsing the U.S. Constitution. They also said Krasner's bid to shut it down under Pennsylvania law was moot because there would be no more Pennsylvania winners before the program ends Tuesday.
Krasner believes the giveaways violates state election law and contradict what Musk promised when he announced them during an appearance with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump 's campaign in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 19: “We’re going to be awarding a million dollars randomly to people who have signed the petition every day from now until the election,” Musk vowed.
Young also acknowledged that the PAC made the recipients sign nondisclosure agreements. “They couldn’t really reveal the truth about how they got the money, right?” Summers asked.
“Sounds right,” Young said.
In an Oct. 20 social media post shown in court, Musk said anyone signing the petition had “a daily chance of winning $1M!”
Summers grilled him on Musk's use of both the words “chance” and “randomly," prompting Young to concede the latter was not “the word I would have selected.”
Young said the winners knew they would be called on stage but not specifically that they would win the money.
Musk did not attend the hearing. He has committed more than $70 million to the super PAC to help Trump and other Republicans win in November.
“This was all a political marketing masquerading as a lottery,” Krasner testified Monday. “That’s what it is. A grift.”
Lawyers for Elon Musk and his political action committee (PAC) confirmed they do not plan to extend the $1 million-a-day lottery beyond Tuesday’s election. District Attorney Larry Krasner pointed out that the first three winners, starting on October 19, were from Pennsylvania, coinciding with the state’s voter registration deadline on October 21.
Other winners came from battleground states including Wisconsin, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, and Michigan, though it remains unclear if anyone has yet received their winnings. The PAC has promised to pay winners by November 30, as indicated in a court exhibit.
Over 1 million people from these seven key states have registered for the sweepstakes by signing a petition supporting the right to free speech and the Second Amendment. Krasner raised concerns about how the PAC might use this data, which will be retained well after the election.
“They were scammed for their information,” Krasner said. “It has almost unlimited use.”
Krasner's team called Musk “the heartbeat of America PAC,” and the person announcing the winners and presenting the checks.
“He was the one who presented the checks, albeit large cardboard checks. We don’t really know if there are any real checks,” Summers said.
Judge Angelo Foglietta oversaw the case at Philadelphia City Hall after Elon Musk and his PAC's attempt to move it to federal court was denied. District Attorney Larry Krasner has stated he may still consider criminal charges, as he is responsible for overseeing both the integrity of elections and the regulation of lotteries.
Pennsylvania, with its 19 electoral votes, remains a critical battleground in the race. Both Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris have made multiple visits to the state, with additional stops planned for the final hours of the campaign on Monday.
Krasner — who noted that he has long driven a Tesla — said he could also seek civil damages for the Pennsylvania registrants. Musk is the CEO and largest shareholder of Tesla. He also owns the social media platform X, where America PAC has published posts on the sweepstakes, and the rocket ship maker SpaceX.
(With inputs from AP)
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.