A Pennsylvania judge is allowing Elon Musk’s America PAC to continue its $1 million a day contest through Nov. 5, according to a ruling on Monday.
The ruling by Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta, who did not immediately explain his reasoning for the decision, came hours after Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s testimony against America PAC on Monday. Kramer argued that the “sweepstakes” violates election laws and that it should be shut down.
Appearing as a witness on Monday, Krasner called the contest “a grift.”
“This was all a political marketing masquerading as a lottery,” the district attorney said.
Earlier that day, it was revealed that the winners of America PAC’s giveaway are not randomly selected. The effort, which asks voters in swing states to sign a petition to potentially win $1 million, appears to be more of a contest.
Attorney Chris Gober said on Monday that the winners of the giveaway were picked based on personal stories that they shared, and that they all signed nondisclosure agreements.
“The $1 million recipients are not chosen by chance,” America PAC attorney Chris Gober said in court on Monday. “We know exactly who will be announced as the $1 million recipient today and tomorrow.”
America PAC’s contest involves giving $1 million to one swing state voter per day until Election Day. The initiative was announced by Musk in October, who described it as a random sweepstakes at a rally for former President Trump on Oct. 19.
“We’re going to be awarding a million dollars randomly to people who have signed the petition every day from now until the election,” Musk said at the campaign event. In a post on X the next day, Musk did not describe it as a random selection.
“Every day, from now through Nov 5, @America PAC will be giving away $1M to someone in swing states who signed our petition to support free speech & the right to bear arms!” Musk’s post read. “We want to make sure that everyone in swing states hears about this and I suspect this will ensure they do.”