Oct. 31 (UPI) — A Philadelphia judge has ordered billionaire Elon Musk to appear at an emergency court hearing on Thursday to address his political action committee’s $1 million award to registered voters in Pennsylvania and other swing states.
The city’s district attorney, Larry Krasner, called the giveaway by Musk, who has voiced support for President Donald Trump and appeared at his rallies recently, and his America PAC an illegal lottery.
Krasner said that since the court filing on Monday, he has received “an avalanche” of negative social media posts from his followers, much of it anti-Semitic.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Angelo Foglietta set the emergency hearing at City Hall, requiring the attendance of all parties.
“America PAC and Musk hatched their illegal lottery scheme to influence voters in that election,” Krasner’s attorneys said in court filings, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Philadelphia district attorney argued that Musk and America PAC broke the state’s consumer protection laws by not displaying lottery rules or how the personal information of participants was protected.
Musk said the sweepstakes is focused on signing a petition that supports the U.S. Constitution and not advocating for any candidate or used as an inducement, which makes it legal.
The sweepstakes, however, is targeted to voters in battleground states, including Pennsylvania.
The Keystone State is considered the grand prize of the battleground states with both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris needing it in most scenarios to win the presidency.
