Elon Musk is putting his money where his mouth is when it come to former President Donald Trump returning to the White House.
The billionaire announced Saturday he will give away $1 million a day on a random basis to registered voters who sign a petition for his pro-Trump political action committee, per CNBC.
Musk’s offer is to entice voters in swing states to cast their ballots on Nov. 5.
“I have a surprise for you,” Musk said at an America PAC event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He explained the offer then added the money will be awarded money is available “every day from now until the election.”
Musk then gave an oversized check to John Dreher, who had signed the petition.
“I think think is kind of fun, and you know, it seems like a good use of money basically,” Musk said.
The Tesla CEO is worth almost $250 billion. He is also CEO of defense contractor SpaceX and owner of social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Musk has been stumping for Trump in Pennsylvania, calling the Keystone State the “linchpin” in the 2024 election.
“How Pennsylvania goes I think is how the election goes,” Musk said.
People have until Monday night to sign the petition, which coincides with the deadline for voter registration in Pennsylvania.
The petition is on the America PAC website.
New Republican voter registration last week in Pennsylvania absolutely crushed Democrat voter registration!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 21, 2024
27.7k Rep vs 12.7k Dem, a 3X difference.
Midnight today is the deadline for registration. Let’s GOOOO!!!!!
Those eligible for the payouts “must be registered voters of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin.”
While some may view this as a magnanimous gesture on Musk’s part, others, like Rick Hasen, a UCLA law professor and NBC news election law analyst, see it as illegal.
Hansen wrote in a blog post that this initiative may violate federal election laws. He pointed to the law that said, a person who “pays or offers to pay or accepts payment either for registration to vote or for voting shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.”
Hasen said in an interview that votes should not be for sale.
“Certain things in this country can be sold, and certain things we have decided should not be for sale,” Hasen said “Congress has determined you should not be able to sell your vote to the highest bidder, and we should not have the political process distorted by people with the most wealth who may try to get you to vote in a certain way.”
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) called the incentive “deeply concerning” in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.
“It’s something that law enforcement could take a look at,” Shapiro added.
Musk has continued the voter fraud conspiracies rhetoric at pro-Trump rallies.
He has also called President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris replaceable “puppets.”
“No one’s even bothering to try to kill Kamala, you know, because there’s no point,” Musk said. “I’m not suggesting someone should try to kill her, it would be pointless, but I’m just saying. I’m just making an observation.”
Musk has also voiced his distrust of the government.
“We should not trust the government, really. We just shouldn’t,” Musk said Harrisburg. “Even if I’m in the government, don’t trust the government.”
Musk also addressed how he feels about Biden and electric vehicles, especially since Tesla was not invited to an electric vehicle summit.
“You know, Tesla’s about 140,000 people — it’s like there’s a lot of blood, sweat and tears from people working hard to make great electric cars,” Musk said on Saturday. “To be could-shouldered like that for no reason. It’s like, what’s the deal?”
In the end, it turned into more of a Musk rally than a Trump rally as Musk rarely talked about the former president and didn’t mention Trump’s policies in detail.
