Elon Musk offers a million to a signatory of a pro-Trump petition every day: is it legal?

A million dollars a day on the table: Elon Musk’s latest initiative, which targets voters in key states, questions its legality a few days before a very uncertain American presidential election where every vote could count. Elon Musk announced that he would give a million dollars, “at random”, once a day to a registered voter in one of the seven key states, where the presidential election on November 5 will be played. And it is through Pennsylvania, the most coveted of them, that it began its distribution on Saturday. But to enter the drawing, you must sign a conservative petition in favor of freedom of expression and the right to bear arms.

“You don’t even have to vote, it’s great!”

Elon Musk is deploying all his energy and all his means to get Donald Trump elected. He now holds meetings in key states and that’s where he distributes money to participants. “Every day from now until the election, we’re going to donate a million dollars. All you have to do is sign a petition in support of the Constitution. You don’t even have to no need to vote, it’s great!” launched the Tesla boss.

“It is illegal to offer money in exchange for a vote”

Democrats accuse the billionaire of buying votes for Donald Trump. Because if the beneficiaries are drawn at random from among the signatories of the petition, they must also be registered on the electoral lists. What alarm David Becker, an election expert, interviewed by CNN: “It is illegal to offer money or accept money or anything of value in exchange for voter registration or a vote. This was the case, for example, when an ice cream parlor wanted to offer free cones to those who came with proof of their vote.”

It will still be long and difficult to prove that Elon Musk’s offer directly violates the law, which leaves the field open until the election.

First supporter of Donald Trump

In recent weeks, he has gone out of his way to support Donald Trump, taking the stage with the former president at a campaign rally and organizing public meetings in Pennsylvania himself.

Since July, he has accumulated $75 million in donations. He has also been campaigning for Donald Trump for months thanks to his X platform and more particularly his account, followed by more than 200 million people and where he gives an echo to controversial content, even disinformation, close to ideas defended by the Republican candidate.