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Musk has been distributing checks totalling $1 million to randomly chosen registered voters who sign a petition in favour of gun rights and free speech.
Elon Musk’s attempt to have a Pennsylvania lawsuit over his $1 million voter prizes transferred to federal court was rejected by a U.S. judge on Friday, and the matter was returned to state court.
Whether the ruling would impact the billionaire’s intention to continue giving out money until Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election was unclear at the time.
U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert rendered the ruling in a federal court in Philadelphia.
Musk has been distributing checks totalling $1 million to randomly chosen registered voters who sign a petition in favour of gun rights and free speech.
As of Friday, 14 individuals had received $1 million prizes from Musk’s America PAC, with the final prize scheduled for Tuesday.
In an attempt to stop the giveaway, Democratic Philadelphia District Attorney Lawrence Krasner filed a lawsuit against Musk and his PAC, which supports Republican former President Donald Trump, in a state court on October 28. The programme was referred to as an illegal lottery by Krasner.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla, and his America PAC attempted to have it moved to federal court two days later, claiming that Krasner’s lawsuit raised issues of free speech and election meddling that belonged in federal court. The state judge who had been presiding over the case decided to halt it as a result.
Krasner referred to Musk’s move as an effort to “run the clock until Election Day” and maintained that the matter should be heard in state court. Krasner made no claims that the giveaway was illegal under federal law.
The outcome of the race between Trump and his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, is expected to be decided by seven battleground states, including Philadelphia, the largest city in Pennsylvania.
Only registered voters in the seven states that are predicted to decide the election—Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—are eligible to accept Musk’s offer.
During an America PAC rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania’s state capital, on October 19, Musk distributed the first $1 million.
There is disagreement among legal experts regarding whether Musk may be breaking federal laws prohibiting paying individuals to register to vote, as the giveaway falls within a murky area of election law.
Despite media reports that the U.S. Department of Justice warned America PAC that the giveaway might violate federal law, federal prosecutors have not made any public statements.
According to federal disclosures, Musk has donated almost $120 million to America PAC thus far.