If you received a check from Trump supporter Elon Musk’s super PAC, you may want to wait to cash it.
Since the ultra-wealthy tech investor and Tesla CEO announced last week that he would pay registered voters to sign a petition on gun rights and free speech issues, questions have arisen about the legality of the program.
It started with an offer to registered voters in Pennsylvania of $47 and an invitation to participate in one of town halls focused on voter turnout for signing the petition. Later the amount increased to $100.
On Saturday, Musk sweetened the deal. While campaigning for Trump in Harrisburg, Musk announced he would do just that give back $1 million to a randomly selected petition signer in one of seven key swing states daily until the election.
Election law experts say federal law clearly prohibits payments to induce people to register to vote or cast ballots. Violators of the rules, whether payers or recipients, may face fines or imprisonment if they are prosecuted. Pennsylvania law is less clear and prohibits payment for votes but not for registration.
Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro said in an interview Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Musk’s spending is “deeply disturbing.”
“I think there are serious questions about how he’s spending money in this race, how dark money is flowing not only into Pennsylvania but clearly now into the pockets of Pennsylvanians,” Shapiro said, adding that Musk has the right to their views and support for the Republican Party’s presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump.
Shapiro did not call for an investigation when asked whether he thought it might break the law.
“Yes, I think it’s something law enforcement might look at. I am no longer the attorney general of Pennsylvania. I’m the governor, but this raises some stern questions,” Shapiro said.
Musk’s PAC did not respond to messages seeking comment on Monday.
Tom King III, former general counsel of the Pennsylvania Republican Party, disagreed. He told the Capital-Star that the offer is not to pay people to register to vote, but rather to allow people who are already registered to sign the petition.
“I don’t see how this applies to any particular campaign,” King said, adding that support for Trump and the constitutional rights to free speech and bear arms are not mutually exclusive.
“It appears that Elon Musk has very strong opinions about the First and Second Amendments,” King said. “I want people to stand up for these rights. This is one way to attract public attention.”
On Thursday, at his first town hall meeting, Musk told the audience that he believed “the future of America and the future of civilization are at stake” in the election.
“It’s clear to me that Donald Trump must win this election,” Musk, wearing a gold “Make America Great Again” hat, told the crowd at Ridley High School in Delaware County.
Musk also has a business interest in the outcome of the election, which means Trump could provide Musk with influence over the federal agencies he contracts with, The New York Times reported..
Asked about the giveaway during Sunday’s campaign event in Pennsylvania, Trump replied: “I haven’t been following it,” adding that he “talks to Elon a lot,” calling him a friend and great for the country, She reported to the Associated Press.
Musk contributed $75 million to his pro-Trump America PAC in recent months, meaning his total spending this election cycle has come to an end $119 million.
Such virtually unlimited political spending has been legal since 2010, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment’s free speech clause prohibits the government from limiting independent spending on political contributions by corporations, nonprofits, unions and other associations.
5-4 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission has led to the creation of a category of political action committees, known as “super PACs,” that can spend unlimited sums as long as they do not coordinate directly with a candidate.
But the law prohibiting paying people to register or vote applies regardless of whether the payments are used to directly support a candidate, experts say.
“It is illegal to give out money on the condition that recipients register to vote,” said Adav Noti, executive director of the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center. “Because the terms of this $1 million ‘contest’ require that the recipient be a registered voter in one of seven swing states (or have registered if they have not already done so), the offer violates federal law and is subject to civil or criminal action.” law enforcement by the Department of Justice.”
Paul Schiff Berman, a law professor at George Washington University, said Musk’s offer is likely illegal under Section 52 of the U.S. Code, which deals with the enforcement of voting rights. The law states: “Whoever…pays, offers to pay, or accepts payment for registering to vote or for voting shall be liable to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for not more than five years.”
“His offer is aimed only at registered voters and is intended to encourage people to register to vote, which is exactly what this bill prohibits,” Berman said. “So I think his offer violates that provision.”
To be eligible to win $1 million, voters must be registered in one of seven key swing states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, according to the America PAC website.
“Whether they like it or not, the law applies to billionaires too, and it’s clear: No matter how you structure it, paying anyone to vote or register to vote is illegal,” said Tiffany Muller, president of End Citizens United, a committee political actions aimed at repealing the decision of the Supreme Court. “So it appears that what Elon Musk and his US PAC are doing is blatantly illegal and if allowed to go unchecked, it would set an extremely dangerous precedent.”
