The Ministry of Justice received complaints about Elon Musk’s million-dollar payments to voters.
Despite being illegal in the United States to pay someone to vote, not vote, or register to vote, Elon Musk was enticing American voters. It all started about two weeks ago when the billionaire began offering payments to registered voters in swing states worth $47. Why? To recruit other voters to sign a mysterious “Support the Constitution” petition. No shame in that, right? Well, except for the fact that we are in the midst of a risky presidential election and “Musk” is doing everything possible to elect one candidate (Donald Trump). Elections require voters, and to vote, you must be registered. In this context, some argue (and have argued) that Musk is financially incentivizing voter registration in swing states.
Not long after his initial offer of $47, Musk raised the amount to $100. Then, a few days ago, Musk escalated things significantly. He announced that every day until the election, he would donate a million dollars to the registered voter who signs his petition. As of writing this, Musk has already distributed two million dollar payments to individual voters.
Critics have claimed that Musk is essentially trying to buy votes for Trump or running a paid voter registration campaign, both of which would be illegal. Political science professor Rick Hasen from the University of California alleges that Musk’s activities constitute “clearly illegal vote-buying.” Now, Justice Department officials confirm that they have received complaints regarding Musk’s giveaways in lottery form, though it is unclear if they plan to take any action regarding this.
The Washington Post reported on Monday that several former Republican officials sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting the Justice Department to look into Musk’s payments to voters. The letter was signed by several high-ranking former officials, including former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman, former Vice President Chief of Staff Olivia Troye, former Federal Election Commission Chairman Trevor Potter, and others. The letter was also directed to several state attorneys general in Pennsylvania.
The letter stated: “We are not aware of anything like this in recent political history,” in reference to Musk’s payments. “We urge you to investigate whether America PAC payments are prohibited payments for voter registration. We understand they are couched as payments for signing a petition or referring signers. But many of the payments are limited to registered voters, so anyone wishing to receive money must first register. If Musk is found guilty of committing such a crime, he could spend up to five years in prison.”
Gizmodo reached out to Musk through Tesla. They also contacted the Justice Department. A source familiar with Musk’s America PAC political action committee told CBS News: “America PAC is confident in the legitimacy of this initiative, and the anticipated media backlash only aids in America PAC’s efforts to support President Trump.” Musk has previously claimed that anyone (regardless of political affiliation) can win his daily million-dollar prize, as long as they sign his petition.
It’s clear that Musk’s payments to voters are putting the Justice Department in a difficult position. With only two weeks left until the election, any effort to investigate or stop Musk could have political implications. If the government takes action against Musk, he and other right-wing agitators could easily spin it as an attack on registered voters who clearly benefit from the billionaire’s charity.
Musk, who has been running voter turnout operations for Trump in key swing states, has spent tens of millions of dollars on a campaign that has become increasingly innovative and bizarre. On Tuesday, a new report claimed that Musk’s America PAC was buying ads for Donald Trump on Musk’s web platform, X (formerly Twitter). Previously, America PAC has faced criticism for a number of other issues and alleged violations. However, the jury is still out on whether Musk is actually helping Trump win. Some high-ranking officials within the Republican Party have expressed concerns that Musk’s efforts are not actually effective. Previous reports have indicated that Musk-funded political action committee voter turnout operations do not have any impact.
