Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of X Holdings Corp., speaks at the Milken Institute’s Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel,on May 6, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Apu Gomes/Getty Images)
Tech billionaire Elon Musk will be required to attend a hearing Friday in Philadelphia on the legality of his Trump-aligned super PAC’s daily $1 million giveaway to voters in Pennsylvania and other swing states, according to court papers filed in the case Wednesday.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner also called on the court to step up security surrounding the hearing following antisemitic posts and threats, including the publication of Krasner’s home address, on Musk’s social media site X, formerly known as Twitter.
Krasner filed a lawsuit Monday alleging that the giveaway is an illegal lottery.
“The same day this Complaint was filed, Elon Musk posted to his 202.7 million followers on X, the social-media website he owns, his agreement with an attack on the integrity of the Court the statement that Larry Krasner ‘knows it’s not illegal but wants a leftist judge to stop it before Election Day,’” the district attorney’s office said in a filing.
It noted Musk’s post had nearly 9 million views and triggered an “avalanche” of replies with antisemitic attacks on Krasner, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Democratic campaign fundraiser George Soros.
“Even worse, one account responded to posts about the lawsuit at least 19 times by inviting political violence, posting Krasner family’s home address, including numerous posts also stating, ‘Krasner loves visitors. Mask up and leave all cellphones at home,’” Krasner’s filing says, noting the posts included instructions on avoiding identification on video or through cell phone geolocation.
The posts remain visible on X, Krasner’s filing said. An attorney for Musk did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Philadelphia Judge Angelo Foglieta issued an order Wednesday afternoon that Musk, a representative for his super PAC and Krasner attend the hearing Friday. It also directed Musk and America PAC to file a response to the lawsuit
Musk, the uber-wealthy SpaceX investor and Tesla CEO announced earlier this month that he would pay registered voters to sign his America PAC’s gun rights and free speech petition, prompting questions about the offer’s legality.
The payments were initially $47 per voter and increased to $100. Then, at a rally for Trump in Harrisburg on Oct. 19, Musk announced he would give away $1 million to a randomly selected petition signer every day until the election.
Election law experts say federal law explicitly forbids payments to induce people to register to vote or cast their ballots. Violators, both payers and payees, can face fines or jail time if they are prosecuted. Pennsylvania law is less clear, prohibiting pay for votes but not for registration.
Musk has contributed around $75 million to his pro-Trump America PAC in recent months, bringing his total spending this election cycle to over $119 million.
Such virtually unlimited spending in the political arena has been legal since 2010, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in its Citizens United decision that the free speech clause of the First Amendment prohibits the government from restricting independent expenditures for political contributions by corporations, nonprofits, unions and other associations.
Krasner’s lawsuit, filed Monday, alleges that the giveaway runs afoul of Pennsylvania’s lottery law and violates consumer protection laws. Under state law, only the commonwealth is authorized to operate a lottery, which raises revenue to fund senior programs.
“To be clear, this is not a case about whether Defendants have violated state or federal laws prohibiting vote-buying. Instead, this case is very simple because America PAC and Musk are indisputably violating Pennsylvania’s statutory prohibitions against illegal lotteries and deceiving consumers,” the lawsuit says.
Krasner’s suit seeks an injunction to stop America PAC and Musk from continuing the violations. It says allowing them to continue would irreparably harm Philadelphia and Pennsylvania residents and “tarnish the public’s right to a fee and fair election.”
Shapiro said in an interview Oct. 20 on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Musk’s spending is “deeply concerning.”
“I think there are real questions with how he is spending money in this race, how the dark money is flowing, not just into Pennsylvania, but apparently now into the pockets of Pennsylvanians,” Shapiro said, adding that Musk has a right to his views and to support GOP presidential nominee former President Donald Trump.
Shapiro stopped short of calling for an investigation when asked if he thought it might break the law.
“Yes, I think it’s something that law enforcement could take a look at. I’m not the attorney general anymore in Pennsylvania. I’m the governor, but it does raise some serious questions,” Shapiro said.
A spokesperson for Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said the office’s priority is to ensure the integrity of elections in the commonwealth. While the attorney general’s office is aware of the situation, the spokesperson said it could neither confirm nor deny an investigation of America PAC’s activities.
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