PANews reported on October 24 that according to CNN, the U.S. Department of Justice recently warned Elon Musk's America PAC that its campaign to give away $1 million a day to registered voters in swing states may violate federal law. The Department of Justice's Public Integrity Division has sent a letter to the political action committee, pointing out that its "cash giveaways" may constitute election-related violations.
Under federal law, it is illegal to pay people to register to vote, and Musk's event requires participants to be registered voters in the designated state and sign a petition in support of the First and Second Amendments. Although Musk emphasized on social media that the winners are not divided by party affiliation and voting is not even mandatory, experts believe that there are still legal risks in limiting the participation of registered voters.
After being criticized, America PAC described the prize money as "speaker compensation," but the terms on its website did not change substantially, still requiring winners to be registered voters. It is not clear whether the Justice Department's letter prompted changes to the campaign's content.
