Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner on Monday sued to halt Elon Musk’s $1 million daily giveaway to voters in battleground states including Pennsylvania, calling it an illegal lottery that skirts state requirements and violates consumer protection laws.
The suit, filed in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court, is the first legal action challenging the controversial sweepstakes launched earlier this month by Musk’s America PAC. It comes a week after the U.S. Justice Department similarly warned the tech billionaire that the giveaway violates federal laws banning inducements to voters.
But Musk, so far, has ignored that warning and continued his pledge to dole out awards to registered voters in seven battleground states every day until Election Day. His PAC has given away more than $9 million — nearly half of it to Pennsylvania voters.
The new lawsuit grants Krasner, a progressive prosecutor and frequent target of Republican ire, the opportunity to take on Musk, who has emerged as one of GOP Donald Trump’s chief surrogates in the state, in court in the waning days of what is an extraordinarily close and contentious presidential race….