As the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, actively campaigns for Donald Trump and pushes a daily, million-dollar giveaway stunt to influence voters in the upcoming presidential election, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office stepped in on Monday to attempt to shut down Musk’s endeavor.
Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner filed a lawsuit against Musk and his political action committee America PAC on Monday, accusing him of breaking state law by “running an illegal lottery” that violates consumer protection laws in Pennsylvania, according to court documents. Krasner is seeking a preliminary injunction against Musk and his political action committee. A court hearing is set for Friday.
“America PAC and Musk are lulling Philadelphia citizens — and others in the Commonwealth (and other swing states in the upcoming election) — to give up their personal identifying information and make a political pledge in exchange for the chance to win $1 million. That is a lottery,” the lawsuit, which was first obtained by the Philadelphia Inquirer, alleges. “And it is indisputably an unlawful lottery. Under unambiguous Pennsylvania law, all lotteries in Pennsylvania must be regulated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”
The Justice Department already issued a warning last week that Musk’s giveaway scheme might also violate federal election law.
Musk, who has been aggressively campaigning for Trump in recent weeks — and who has been using his platform as the owner of Twitter to advocate for Trump, spread conspiracy theories, lies and racist rhetoric for months and years now — announced his million-dollar giveaway at a Trump rally on Oct. 19. There, Musk encouraged registered voters to turn over identifying information about themselves, including their cell phone numbers and addresses, and to sign a pledge in support of the First and Second Amendment in order to be randomly selected for a daily prize of $1 million. Musk has also been giving away $100 apiece to voters in Pennsylvania who sign the pledge, and $47 for the same in other swing states. Krasner alleges in the complaint that Musk is specifically trying to influence voters in the critically important swing state.
Despite the DOJ’s warnings, Musk has defended the scheme online, arguing that he is not encouraging anyone to vote Republican or even vote in the presidential election as a dodgy defense against serious concerns about whether he’s violating federal laws against buying votes.
Read the full complaint here.
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