Elon Musk has pledged to give away $1 million every day to people who sign an online petition in support of the first and second amendments in the US Constitution. The move is part of an apparent bid to incentivise Republicans in battleground states to register to vote ahead of the US presidential election.
At a town hall event in Pennsylvania over the weekend, Musk said that he’ll be randomly choosing people who have signed his petition, asking people to pledge support to the first and second amendment. In a lottery fashion, the individuals who comply will each receive $1 million.
His online petition reads: “The First and Second Amendments guarantee freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. By signing below, I am pledging my support for the First and Second Amendments.”
The petition looks to be pushing for Trump votes, considering that the small print says eligible people must be registered voters in key battleground states. Signing the petition is also a requirement for people to attend Musk’s town hall events.
The money will come through America Pac, the Donald Trump- allied political action committee that Musk founded.
Musk’s announcement has sparked calls for an investigation into the legalities of such actions.
It’s a federal crime to pay people with the intention of inducing or rewarding them to cast a vote or to get registered, according to a Justice Department election-crimes manual. The offense is punishable by prison time.
On Saturday, Musk gave the first $1 million check to an attendee in Pennsylvania’s event. The following day, he gave another person the second $1 million check at an event in Pittsburgh.
Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor, Josh Shapiro, has called for law enforcement to investigate Musk’s financial promise to his supporters.
Speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press, Shapiro described Musk’s actions as “deeply concerning” and “something that law enforcement could take a look at”.
“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. That is deeply concerning,” he said.
UCLA law professor Rick Hasen wrote in his blog that Musk’s actions were “clearly illegal”, considering that America Pac is offering the $1 million payments to registered voters.
“If all he was doing was paying people to sign the petition, that might be a waste of money. But there’s nothing illegal about it,” Hasen told the AP. “The problem is that the only people eligible to participate in this giveaway are the people who are registered to vote. And that makes it illegal.”