Elon Musk's $1 million election giveaway tests limits of election law

Elon Musk’s $1 million giveaway for voters who sign his free-speech and gun-rights petition falls into a gray area of election law, and legal experts are divided about whether the billionaire supporter of Donald Trump could be running afoul of prohibitions on paying people to register to vote.

The Tesla CEO is promising to give $1 million each day to a randomly selected person who signs his online petition pledging to support the First and Second amendments of the U.S. Constitution, which protect the rights to free speech and gun ownership.

“There is certainly an argument that this falls within the scope of a federal prohibition on paying a person to vote or register to vote,” said Daniel Weiner of the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice. “This is part of a pattern of him skating up to the edge of election laws that we’ve seen in the past several weeks.”

Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk attends a rally by Republican presidential nominee former U.S. President Donald Trump, on the day Trump returns to the site of the July assassination attempt against him, in Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 5, 2024.Reuters

The giveaway could be interpreted as Musk using his wealth to attempt to influence the tightly contested presidential race between Trump and his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Musk's representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.

Legal eagles divided

Four legal experts were divided on whether the giveaway violates federal laws that make it a crime to pay or offer to pay a person to register to vote.

Brad Smith, a Capital University Law School professor and former Federal Election Commission chairman, said Musk is likely in the clear because signing the petition is sufficiently far removed from registering to vote.

"The mere fact that there might be an incentive doesn’t arise to a payment for a particular activity," Smith said.

An attendee holds a sign as Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk (not pictured) who supports Republican presidential nominee former U.S. President Donald Trump, speaks about voting during an America PAC Town Hall in Folsom, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 17, 2024.Reuters

Adav Noti of the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center agreed, saying it is illegal to give out money on the condition that people are registered to vote.

Weiner of the Brennan Center said the promotion is legally “fishy” but falls into a gray area. The question boils down to whether signing the petition is merely a pretext for getting people to register to vote, he said.

But Smith of Capital University said that Musk has other plausible reasons for wanting people to sign the petition, including gathering names of likely voters who support his causes.

Targeting battleground states

Musk's America PAC seeks to play a major role in helping mobilize and register voters in battleground states that could decide the election.

Terms of the petition state that signers must be registered voters in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania or Wisconsin - all states that are likely to decide the election.

Pennsylvania's Democratic governor, Josh Shapiro, said on Sunday that the giveaway was "deeply concerning” and called on law enforcement to investigate.

Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk and Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) attend a campaign rally held by Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. president Donald Trump, at the site of the July assassination attempt against Trump, in Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 5, 2024. Reuters

While Musk’s promotion does not directly induce people to register, its timing and focus on battleground states indicate the petition component is merely a pretext, according to Richard Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, who said the sweepstakes is therefore illegal.

“I think signing the petition is irrelevant to the legal question because you must be a registered voter. It doesn’t matter if you add other conditions,” Hasen said, adding that the U.S. Department of Justice election crimes manual specifically cites lottery chances as potentially illegal payments.

What's in it for Musk

Musk, ranked by Forbes as the world's richest person, so far has supplied at least $75 million to America PAC, according to federal disclosures, making the group a crucial part of Trump's bid to regain the White House.

The entrepreneur has increasingly supported Republican causes and this year became an outspoken Trump supporter.

Musk has millions of dollars in government contracts and his companies face significant and at times costly government regulations which typically are designed to protect things like consumers, drinking water and wildlife.

Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk stands with Republican presidential nominee former U.S. president Donald Trump during a campaign rally, on the day Trump returns to the site of the July assassination attempt against him, in Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 5, 2024.Reuters

If reelected, Trump promises to make Musk head of a government efficiency commission, a job Musk vows will help rid the country of regulations he views as bad for the economy and a deterrent to doing business.

Musk was asked if in such a job he would take a flamethrower to stacks of regulations and post a video of it. "I think a bonfire of nonsense regulations would be epic," Musk said.

Musk recounted how SpaceX was forced to conduct a study to determine whether his rockets would hurt sharks when landing in the water.

"I'm like, it's a big ocean, you know, there's a lot of sharks. It's not impossible, but it's very unlikely," Musk said.

Reluctantly, they conducted the study only to be told to do a similar review on potential threats to whales, Musk said.