CNN —
Elon Musk’s super PAC awarded two $1 million prizes to registered voters in Michigan and Wisconsin on Thursday after receiving a warning from the Justice Department that the payments may be illegal.
These come after news broke on Wednesday that the Justice Department had sent a letter to the organization warning that its “daily” sweepstakes could violate federal election laws that prohibit the payment of voter registration fees. , the first giveaway by a pro-Donald Trump super PAC.
Musk, Tesla CEO and the world’s richest person, launched the sweepstakes on Saturday, and his super PAC named a winner each day until Wednesday. No winners were announced at the time, but two winners were announced Thursday on social media platform X, which is owned by Mr. Musk.
The group has not publicly explained the apparent one-day hiatus, and a spokesperson for the super PAC declined to comment. It’s unclear when Musk received the Justice Department’s letter.
Nonpartisan election law experts quickly raised concerns about the sweepstakes after Musk first campaigned during a pro-Trump campaign event in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
To win the $1 million prize, people must sign a petition affirming their support for free speech and the right to bear arms. But the fine print on the super PAC’s website specifies that only registered voters in seven battleground states are eligible to sign the petition, which experts say is the heart of the potential illegality. are.
Those controversial requirements had not changed as of Thursday night and are still posted on the super PAC’s website.
Federal law criminalizes anyone who “pays, offers to pay, or accepts payment to register or vote.”
Legal experts previously told CNN they believe the main problem with Musk’s sweepstakes is that it requires voter registration to enter the sweepstakes. This problem could be solved if sweepstakes were offered to every American, regardless of registration status.
In response to a post claiming that Musk was “paying Republican registration fees,” the tech mogul said the winner “doesn’t have to be from any political party or any political party. You don’t even have to vote.” He also criticized Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and former state attorney general, for questioning the legality of the sweepstakes.
According to federal filings, Mr. Musk has donated about $119 million to America PAC, the super PAC he helped form to help Mr. Trump re-elect, including about $44 million in October. Ta. He said he hopes the sweepstakes will increase registration of people who voted for President Trump. He recently went on the campaign trail in Pennsylvania, holding events on Trump’s behalf, promoting petitions and spreading conspiracy theories about the 2020 election.
America PAC also received about $3 million in October from influential members of the DeVos family, including former Trump administration Secretary of Education Betsy, who resigned in the wake of the January 6, 2021, riot. It also included $250,000 from DeVos.
These additional donations in October will allow Musk’s group to continue spending tens of millions of dollars on campaigning and field operations in key battleground states, helping the Trump campaign manage Kamala Harris’ record-breaking fundraising campaign. It helps keep pace with procurement and massive campaign spending.
CNN’s David Wright contributed to this report.
