Elon Musk, backing Donald Trump, offers S$1.3 million to 1 US voter a day in possible illegal scheme

Elon Musk, the world's richest man, has come up with a scheme to reward voters in swing states in the run-up to the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

However, his giveaways may contravene U.S. voter laws.

Musk backing Trump

Musk, who has thrown his support behind Donald Trump via campaign appearances and millions in donations, announced a new plan that would likely sway voters to the Republican cause.

BBC reported that Musk announced on Oct. 19, 2024 that he would give away US$1 million a day to a registered voter in the state of Pennsylvania, as long as they signed a petition with AmericaPAC, a fundraising group associated with Musk that backs Trump's campaign.

He gave away the first jumbo-sized, lottery-style cheque to a surprised attendee at the town hall meeting where he made the announcement.

Another cheque was given away on Oct. 20.

The PAC also said that anyone who signed the petition and whoever referred them will get US$100 (S$130).

The "petition" would likely be used as a data-mining tool for the Trump campaign, Sydney Morning Herald noted, as it requires the signee to provide their contact information, which the campaign could then use to contact them about voting.

Possible illegal vote-buying

However, Musk's announcement drew a rebuke from Josh Shapiro, the Democratic Governor of Pennsylvania.

Shapiro, who was tapped as a possible vice-presidential candidate for Trump's opponent Kamala Harris, called the giveaway "deeply concerning" and said it was something for law enforcement to review, NPR reported.

Rick Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, said on his blog that the scheme is "clearly illegal".

It is a U.S. federal crime to pay people with the intention of inducing or rewarding them to cast a vote or to get registered.

The payment does not have to be in cash.

Other examples given are liquor and lottery chances.

In an interview with AP, Hasen clarified that paying people to sign a petition would not be illegal, but the requirement that one has to be a registered voter to qualify for the giveaway makes it illegal, in his view.

Brendan Fischer, a campaign finance lawyer, told AP that the petition may be legal if every Pennsylvania-based person who signed the petition was eligible, but conditioning the payments on voter registration "arguably violates the law".

Importance of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is emerging as a crucial swing state in the campaign, with 19 electoral votes to the candidate that gets the most vote in the state.

A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to be elected president.

The Keystone State went for Trump against Hillary Clinton in 2016, but went for Joe Biden against Trump in 2020, elevating Biden to the presidency.

Both Trump and Harris have been campaigning in Pennsylvania as the race draws closer to election day on Nov. 5 (Nov. 6 Singapore time).

Top image from Elon Musk's X (formerly Twitter).