Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner sued businessman Elon Musk and his America PAC, a pro-Donald Trump political action committee, on Monday, in an attempt to shut down Musk’s $1 million daily giveaway to registered voters in swing states, Courthouse News reports. “America PAC and Musk are lulling Philadelphia citizens — and others in the Commonwealth (and other swing states in the upcoming election) — to give up their personal identifying information and make a political pledge in exchange for the chance to win $1 million. That is a lottery. And it is indisputably an unlawful lottery,” Krasner said. Krasner claims in the lawsuit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas that the giveaway violates both state lottery and consumer protection laws and demands an injunction to end the program immediately. Announced on Oct. 19, the giveaway has named nine winners by Monday, four of whom are Pennsylvania registered voters. According to America PAC, all registered voters in battleground states Pennsylvania, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and North Carolina who sign the PAC’s “Petition in Favor of Free Speech and the Right to Bear Arms” are enrolled in the giveaway, with one signer chosen at random daily.
Krasner says Pennsylvania registered voters are encouraged to sign the petition, with the PAC claiming they will receive $100 for signing the petition, and can receive an additional $100 for referring another registered voter to sign. Participants must provide America PAC their personal information, including first and last name, email address, mailing address and cell phone number. The rules place no limitations on the PAC’s use or sale of the data it collects, Krasner notes. By giving cash rewards to random participants in exchange for personal information and a political pledge, Krasner says Musk and America PAC’s sweepstakes qualify as a lottery under Pennsylvania law, which restricts lottery operations to the state itself. Additionally, by failing to clearly provide a complete set of contest rules, failing to disclose participants’ odds of winning, and failing to disclose how America PAC will use and/or store participants’ personal data, the giveaway fails to adhere to Pennsylvania consumer protection laws, Krasner says. “Running an illegal lottery and violating consumer protections is ample basis for an injunction and concluding that America PAC and Musk must be stopped, immediately, before the upcoming presidential election on November 5,” Krasner says. “If not enjoined, their lottery scheme will irreparably harm Philadelphians — and others in Pennsylvania — and tarnish the public’s right to a free and fair election.”
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